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-  force  in  music,  and  reprSts  .  ''^ '"' '^ 
^  may  be  that  too  much  s[re'T  ^  ''^1"^  "''^• 
I  possibilities  of  earning  few  brthr"  ''^'  "^^^ 
I  musical  profession,  lerhal  ton  t'^'"""*'  *^ 
-g  been  laid  upon  thi«  Z,l  ^  "'''''^  emphasis 
?  studios  in  a  manned  ,n^  ^l  '''''^'''   ^^'^o  fu, 

.  -one,  and  ^TZ'l^ollf^l^^^^^^^^^^  «/  ^ 
jt  ers.     Earning  power  is  nn7  n         !      ^^  ""'^^'^  ^^ 


2      J  teachers. 


~  ^        -   -"  "".^  Liie  oniy  thinjr  need 

^l-^-S  r  I  iF    •'^^  ^-- «f^ehara:L"\lbTtion'  ^""'"^-^  P^'^'"  ^ 
g.-^^-S  II  1-22!  than    a   modicum    o?tt:r^T''''"^^^  ^^^ 

-11  ^^  I  ^.""-JV  t'oTr  ^™-i--dtat  X"   ^P^f      ^ 

&"  S  o  i  ^  §.il  §     *°  ^?^^^*  that  the  schools  are  not"  o.W  .    ''/' 

^.S  S  §-«  >  S  S§     Pf  Pl«  in  order  that  they  Zl  T .T^ ^''.  '^" 

f::o  =  .g'oE>.'«    :?"^ate    them    in    order    thrfth^       ^'**'^'  ^"' 

c-S^  g>^  ^  >.S-2;  They  are  to  be  trainpd   i       ^  u^    ""^^    ^°    ^hi 

^  P=    S.    e  ..  .|:       The  music  teac,:  ^of  th'e  ??'';  Tt  ^''^^"^'^"^ 

^    us  not  merely  to  Ip^  m     ^°'**^^  ^^^^^^  are  v 

^  sing  for  the  e^ertlyj^I^  tV  '"™  ^^  ^'^'"^^  ^^ 

=    or  for  their  friendsTtL V      ^«"^^rt-going  pu) 

circle;    their  opportunitv        ,r'  ^"^   ^"   ^^'^  ^oc 

make  eharacterrhlr     !    "^''^U^  ^^J-'P 


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]  press    themselves    in    musfp  !^'  ^^'^^^^^  «^^"  ' 

J  tatively  as  the  ^.se  mTvTe'    Z     ""''^    ^^    ^"'^^P^ 
'  from  the  studio  with  ?  i  ^^""^  *  P^Pil  aw; 

:  commended  isTut  f^orti  roT.r'^'  ^"^  P^^-: 
i«  to  do.     He  is  to  l-ylZ  that      "''"'^  *''  '^'^^'^' 
•  °^n  earnestness,  his  broad  nnfl,    ^T^  '""^^  «^  '^ 
^to  ,io  o,.^.,,,;,:  ;.'  ,,,^^1  «""ook  into  life,  his  desi 

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JULOW. 


IMAGI>'E     a     little     wniic- 

faced  boy  sitting  huddled; 
up  in  the  feathers  of  his 
man  bed,  listening,  wide-eyed,  in  the  dark, 
her  and  mother  quarreling— and  you  have 

one  of  the  most  frequent  happenings  in 
t  Bulow's  child-life.  To  be  wakened  by  his 
weeping  or  his  father's  angry  voice— per-j 
ear  his  sister  Isadore,  and  to  steal  out  inta 
svith  her  where  they  listened,  hand-m-hand, 
iding   nothing   of    what    they    heard   except 

on  the  next  day  mamma  would  stay  m  bed 
eadache,  and  papa  would  go  oflf  early  and 
day,  and  that  there  would  be  no  fun,  onlj 
rearv  hours.  • 

Dapa'was  a  jolly,  good  sort  of  a  papa  enough 
id  the  temper  that  would  bite  one's  head  ofl 
the  end  of  a  long  rollicking  laugh,  and  senc 
to  the  corner  without  explaining  why.  His 
was  a  very  accomplished  lady,  and  he  lovec 
ly    but,  unfortunately,  she  lived  at  a  tim< 

was  fashionable  for  ladies  to  have  verj 
feelings,  and  a  great  deal  of  what  was  callec 
y     The  druggists  of  those  years  did  a  grea' 

in  smelling-salts,  for  it  was  considered  "ele 
,  faint  upon  every  possible  occasion.     Ladiei 
period  wept  when  they  were  glad  as  well  ai 
ey  were  sorrv,  and  never  put  their  handker 
way  because  'they  had  such  constant  use  foi 
■hev  always  had  their  portraits  painted  with 
chief  in  hand,  and  they  went  to  walk  with  a 
chief   neatly   held  between  thumb   and   fore- 
nth  four  lace  corners  drooping  daintily,  all 
D  catch  a  flood  of  tears.     Poor  Hans'  mothei 
I  the  fashion  with  the  result  that  both  Hans 
,  father  suffered  much   from  what  has  beer 
'the  tvrannv  of  tears."     In  the  very  earliest 
5'  letters,  written  when  he  was  only  ten  yean 

inquired  anxiously  after  his  mother's  head 
id  feelings,  and  they  haunted  him  constantlj 
m<rh  the  rest  of  his  life,— constant  irritants. 

not  very  happy  German  family  lived  in  tM 

Dresden,  where  Hans  was  born  in  1830.  Hifc  y 
was  a  chamberlain  to  the  Prince  of  Anhalt^  \ 
eans  that  he  looked  after  the  private  affairB 

prince.  However,  the  prince  had  only  a  very 
principalitv,  so  that  his  affairs  did  not  keep 
v^on  Billow  verv  busy,  and  he  used  his  spare 
n  writing  books.  They  lived  in  apartments, 
ans'  early  associations  were  for  the  most  part 
'T\  cultured  and  refined  nature. 

•  on.  when  he  was  sent  away  to  prepare  to  be 
^^*=    he   lived   with    some   relatives,   was   very 

y   'l  felt  much  neglected.    He  composed  songs, 
"    f  his  cousins  would  listen  to  them  or  try 

^'^     -a  for  him;    and,  too,  he  missed  the  fussy 
,  had  been  accustomed  to  receive  from  his 

'3  was  always  a  very  delicate  boy.    He  had 
^c  in  him  naturally,  but  the  jolly  side  of 
-r  ■  got    a    chance   to   grow,   because    he   was 
c  up  on  coddling  and  "don'ts."    He  could 


against  all  kinds  of  nagging  and  discouragement. 
°This  sort  of  thing  does  not  sweeten  one's  temj 
and  you  will  find  that  after  he  grew  up  he  gol 
great  reputation  for  being  a  crank  and  dreadfv 
conceited.  Both  of  these  he  probably  was,  and  m 
certainly  would  not  have  been  if  he  had  had 
mother  like  Madame  Gounod,  and  a  beautiful  ch 
life  like  Charles  Gounod's.  But  however  disag 
able  and  sour  he  was  as  a  man,  there  certainly  ■ 
nothing  of  this  in  him  as  a  boy. 

Some  years  ago,  a  book  was  published,  contair 

the  letters  which  Hans  had  written  to  his  relat 

and    friends    before    he    was    twenty-five    years 

When  people  who  knew  him  only  after  he  had  gr 

up,  heard  that  his  letters  were  to  be  published,  1 

said :    "Oh,  what  a  bookful  of  malice  and  sarcasm 

will  be !  "     But  when  they  read  the  book  they  fc 

nothing  of  the  sort;    for  these  boy-letters  of  1 

Von    Bulow   are   full   of    sweetness,   good    faith 

determined  earnestness.     The  letters  tell  the  stor 

a  boy  who  had  as  hard  a  time  in  working  his  way 

a  musical  career  as  any  poor  boy  ever  had;    an 

you  read  these  letters  you  will  see  what  a  tender, 

sitive  nature  it  was  that  that  hard  crust  grew 

which  was  the  outward  Hans  Von  Bulow  as  a  mai 

He  became  the  greatest  teacher  of  the  century. 

composed    much,    made    many    tours    as    a    con 

pianist,    made    many    valuable    editions    of    the 

masters,  was  a  wonderful  orchestral  conductor, 

he  was  greatest  of  all  as  a  teacher.     He  taught 

only  those  who  came  to  him  for  lessons,  but 

every  man  that  ever  played  in  his  orchestras. 

taught  the  public  through  the  newspapers,  for  \ 

he  wrote  much;    and  he  taught  every  audienc 

fore  which  he  played.    He  came  to  America  as  a 

cert-pianist,  but  the  shrewd  Yankee  soon  foun( 

his    strongest    characteristic    and    dubbed    him 

schoolmaster."    He  may  even  be  said  to  have  ti 

the  generations  which   came  after  him,   for  hi 

fluence  is  still  felt  in  music,  and  you  will  not 

very  much  farther  in  music  without  coming 

this  influence  yourself.— fl^etena  if.  Maguire. 


A) 


y  ^^'^        Lecture  on  Von  BuELOw.y^ig,^^^/    'J^>»^ 

Marie  von  Buelow,  the  widow  of  the  famous  conductor 
and  pianist,  gave  an  entertaining  talk  on  her  distinguished 
husband  at  Bechstein  Hall  on  Sunday  evening.  It  was  a 
fascinating  biographical  sketch,  enlightened  and  illumined 
by  many  a  characteristic  anecdote.  Of  great  interest,  too, 
were  various  extracts  which  she  read  from  von  Buelow's 
letters.  The  audience  consisted  largely  of  persons  who 
often  had  come  under  the  spell  of  von  Buelow's  wonder- 
ful personality,  both  as  conductor  and  as  pianist.  Al- 
though much  of  the  material  contained  in  the  lecture 
was  already  familiar  to  them,  the  Nietzsche  reminiscences 
and  some  of  the  anecdotes  were  quite  new.  Mme.  von 
Buelow  before  her  marriage  was  an  actress  of  note  on  the 
celebrated  Meiningen  stage,  and  the  ease,  assuran'i^and 
conviction  with  which  she  spoke,  proved  that  she  still 
knows  how  to  estabUsh  and  hold  contact  with  the  public 


HANS  VON  BUELOW, 
Who   died   February   24,    1894.     His 
widow,  Marie  von   Bulow,   recent- 
ly   delivered    a    lecture    in    Berlin 
on    her   late  distinguished  husband. 


AN  INTERESTING 
PHOTOGRAPH 

The  photograph  on  this  page 
has  peculiar  interest  since  the 
one  of  the  group  in  the  center 
is  Karl  Klindworth,  the  re- 
nowned pianist,  teacher,  and 
editor,  who  died  about  the 
end  of  last  July,  the  exact 
date  not  being  available,  due 
to  uncertainties  of  news  trans- 
mission at  the  present  time. 
The  original  from  which  the 
reproduction  is  taken  is  in  the 
collection  of  Mr.  Adolph  M. 
Foerster,  of  Pittsburgh,  to 
whom  it  was  given  by  Klind- 
worth in  1888.  With  him  are 
two  other  pupils  of  Liszt, 
Tausig,  at  the  left.  Von  Biilow, 
at  the  right.  As  Tausig  died 
in  1871  the  photograph  carries 
the  reader  back  nearly  fifty 
years.  Klindworth's  most 
noteworthy  contributions  to 
piano  music  are  his  edition  of 
Chopin's  works  and  the  piano 
score  of  Wagner's  Ring  music 
dramas. 


3M> 


^iT]  X/a 


7^7 


CHOPIN'S  PRELUDES,  OP.  28.  ANALYZED 

VON    BiJLOW^ 


TRANSLATED  BY  FREDERICK  S.  LAW 


PORTRAIT  OF   VON   BULOW 


it  is  to  this  that  we  must  go  for  the  story  c 
which  he  kept  from  the  world  at  large;  he  \ 
who  wear  their  hearts  on  their  sleeves.  Tl 
passed  the  scrutiny  of  some  of  his  nearest  a: 
friends,  who  were,  moreover,  thoroughly 
his  methods  of  composing;  such,  for  instan( 
two  pupils  of  his  own,  Wilhelm  von  Leni 
de  Kalergis.  All  declared  that  they  reflect 
feelings  and  intentions  with  the  utmost  ace 
No.  I.  C  major.  Reunion. 
The  whole  prelude  expresses  the  joy  o 
after  a  quarrel — in  the  stretto,  indeed,  tl 
travagance,  only  to  regain  tranquillity  o 
the  end.  This  is  indicated  by  the  fin,al  lej 
of  C. 

No.  2.  A  fhinor.  Presentiment  of  Death 
This  is  as  uncertain  in  character  as  in  ke 
E  minor,  goes  into  G  major;  then  to  B  mir 
itself  slowly  in  A  minor.  The  mood  is  const 
yet  it  always  comes  back  to  one  and  the 
the  melancholy  tolling  of  a  funeral  knell, 
accompaniment  in  the  left  hand  is  diflficult 
In  the  right  hand  one  bears  the  inexorable 
though  toward  the  end  it  falters  and  lose 
in  uncertain  tones,  as  if  saying,  "He  com 
liverer!  It  was  a  delusion."  This  is  what 
end  seems  to  say. 

No.  3.  G  major.     Thou  art  so  like  a  flo: 
An  angel  flits  through  the  open  windo^ 


•uoijnpnTi  puv  sn/wq  sjj  .-otsnjf 
wax  J — (JAUBuiaaQ  ui  sauBJoduia^uoo  jpq;  3J3m  oqm  s;d3} 
VipjB  pu-s  sjo;d|nDS  'sja^ured  aqi  jo  saui-BU  aqi  avouji  sn  jo 
fAvreui  Aioq  ;nq  iuaAoqiaaa  pu^  yxioYi  'ppu-Bjj  'qo^g  p 
'sauiBu  aq;  smou^i  auoXjaAg;  -ani-BA  aApBiuasajdaj  Xubuoi; 
-daoxa  \m  paiinbD'B  SBq  Disnui  pouad  ujapoui  aqi  ui  x^\\\ 
pauadd^q  U3A3  s^q  \\  "uaitojqun  3jb  s^d'bj  jo  sauas  aqj 
auii;  juasajd  aqj  o;  sa3^  ;uB}sip  ;soui  aq;  uiojj  •sav-bj  pin 
-pnj;s  s;t  q^iAi.  Xjjaod  papiAOjd  s^q  ji  I'cq}  puB  Xj;aod  uBqi 
^uopuB  ajoui  SI  oisnui  jBqi  SuiX-bs  ui  xop'BJ'ed  ou  si  aiaqx 

••Bja  uBijsuqQ  aqi  ajopq  Xan^uaD 

qjof   aqj   oj   ji   ajnquiJB   'japjoj   -pj  aijq   'saSpnf  pooQ 

•sajBjqdn^    aq;    qiiAv    suSix    aqi    spauuoD    q.iiqAv    \e\xvo 

iaqj  JO  jjuBq  ^jaj  aqj  uo  'qoijaj,  jo  aoBj^d  aqj  j'b  3321^5 

lap    H   Xq   pajaAoosip   'jsidj^q   v  Supuasajdai   jaqaj-sBq 

]uBapiBq3  B  SI  ssassod  aM  juauinoop  juapuB  isoui  aqj, 

•;q3is  ano  puoXaq  saqapjjs  Xjojsiq  |BDisniu  jo  ppg  anj, 

naiavaKOD  sainf  as 


Suisudjajua  puB  aAissaiSS-e  uy  i,"^^^  a 
SB  siuapuB  aq;  Xq  pa^BuSisap  aaaM.  subi 
■UAiouaj  ojui  u 
}i  aiaqAv  adojng  ujajsa^Y  oj  'uijoj  jaijBi 
aqj  Xjjbd  oj  'suBpiuaoqj  aqj  'aDBJ  jaq;ou 
;i  "pouad  ^saqjBa  sji  jo  uiioj  a5[ii-Moc 
pauinsaj  ^uauirujsui  aq;  pauBAS.  uoijBzijiAp 
uaijBi  aq}  ui  JB^id  jo  ;jod( 
aauasajd  aqj  ui  si  ujapoui  aqj  jo  jBqj  puB  1 
uoipnjjsuoD  aqj  ui  aouajaj[jip  uibui  aqj^  • 
-paaaans  jo  uoijBJiuipB  aqi  uaaq  SBq  qDiqA\ 
JO  aDUBJBaddB  ub  juauinjjsui  aqj  oj  aA'BS 
-jo-j3q;Qm  'XiOAi  ui  'uoi^duosap  a^BUJO  ;sc 

JHVH  NHaaoiv  V 


-r 


asnes  ne  gazea  nxeuiy  at  iicr,  ajjpaiciuiy  wiuiuui.  js.uuwuig 
who  she  was.  The  small  notes,  which  wind  throughout 
almost  all  the  keys  by  means  of  chromatic  and  enharmonic 
modulations,  picture  his  feverish  anxiety  and  ever  increas- 
ing frenzy;  the  thumb  of  the  right  hand  intones  an  exquisite 
melody,  distinguished  by  beauty  as  well  as  by  passion. 
Shortly  before  the  close  he  seems  to  recognize  the  features 
of  his  loved  one  (F  sharp  major,  sixth  measure  from  the 
end);  but  almost  immediately  they  fade  (F  sharp  minor, 
third  measure  from  the  end),  and  again  desperation  reigns. 

No.  9.     E  major.     Vision. 

Here  Chopin  has  the  conviction  that  he  has  lost  his 
power  of  invention.  With  the  determination  to  discover 
whether  his  brain  can  still  originate  ideas  he  strikes  his 
head  with  a  hammer  (here  the  sixteenths  and  the  thirtF- 
seconds  are  to  be  carried  out  in  exact  time,  indicating  a 
double  stroke  of  the  hammer).  In  the  third  and  fourth 
measures  one  can  hear  the  blood  trickle  (trills  in  the  left 
hand).  He  is  desperate  at  finding  no  inspiration  (fifth 
measure);  he  strikes  again  with  the'  hammer  and  with 
greater  force  (thirty-seconds  twice  in  succession  during 
the  crescendo).  In  the  key  of  A  flat  he  finds  his  powers 
again;  appeased,  he  seeks  his  former  key  and  closes  con- 
tentedly. 

No.  10  C  sharp  minor.     The  Night  Moth. 

A  night  moth  is  flying  around  the  room — there!  it  has 
suddenly  hidden  itself  (the  sustained  G  sharp);  only  its 
wings  twitch  a  little.  In  a  moment  it  takes  flight  anew 
and  again  settles  down  in  the  darkness — its  wings  flutter 
(trill  in  the  left  hand).  This  happens  several  times,  but 
at  the  last,  just  as  the  wings  begin  to  quiver  again,  the  busy- 
body who  lives  in  the  room  aims  a  stroke  at  the  poor  in- 
sect— it  twitches  once.  .  .  and  dies. 

No  II.  B  major.     The  Dragon-fly. 

It  flies  in  a  circle  round  a  pool;  now  it  darts  to  the  centre, 
now  to  and  fro — a  last  time — it  sinks  in  the  water. 

No  12.  G  sharp  minor.     The  Duel. 

As  is  well  known,  Chopin  was  of  a  jealous  disposition — 

vals 
'3{iOAi.  i|B  uodn  UAiop  UiW.ojj  o}  SUI33S  'xuA.01  am  3uii[ooiaiUe 

nm  ^U°l  ^HJ  uodn  paqDjad   'SjnquaLrBj^  juapuB  aqx  - 

•3{qBJ  pUB  3uOS  JO  S3U3[p3  3ui 

-jadsiqAv  aip  qj^auaq  paunq  Aiou  jQjBAiqo  puB  3Dubuioi  oSb 
Suoi  JO  s[ia;  jBqj  suub  jo  %voo  pjo  snouno  jo  anj-Bjs  v  s^q 
SJ39JJS  paABd  ajqqoo  SuipuiAV  aq;  ui  puaq  qo-ea  puB  uisoo;  b 
spunos  azaajq  uapBj  adBoS  XjaAa  ajaq^  'Sinqzin^w  aifij  umo; 
{BAseipaui  jurenb  v  u;  os  A\jv\noiu^^  -jsuibSb  dn  saoS 
jaAa  juauiuiaAo3  pagiuSip  uoijisodojd  ;inoijjTp  ;soui  aq; 
i([pa;qnopun  suijoj  sjasoduioo  poisnui  SunoX  jo  ssbjd  y 

•qnsaj  aq;  uoos  si  aouBijaj 
-jjas  puB  ';i  o;  ppB  oj  XjjBnpBjS  puB  'uoijinj  qDns  japun  'ji 
aziuSooaj  puB  azqBaj  o;  ja5[DTnb  si  aq  ip.vi  3uiqiamos  saop 
Jidnd  }Bqj  ami;  ;xau  aqj^  •;uaiuoui  ajaui  aq;  uBq;  jaq;jnj 
SutqoBaj    jaAvod    b    sBq    uoi;BJidsui   jo    3uua;soj    siqx 

•ua;;oSjoj  aq  ;ouuBa  ;i  ;Bq;  os  ;i  azisBqduia 
o;  puB  ;uauia§Bjno3ua  ;noq;iAs.  ssBd  X;iun;aoddo  ub  qons 
;a|  o;  jaAau  uia;sXs  siq  si  ;j  -ssauiiAvoi  ajqissod  s;i  jo  jBaj 
pajoqBj  UI  ua;;uAi  Suos  ;sapoui  b  jo  apn;a  pa^Bjd  XpoaxioD  b 


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th  dram; 


valuable  adjuncts 
alternated  with  otht 
at  times  dropped,  ai 
further  practice,  a. 
progress.  Other  S' 
future  articles. 

It  is  not  many  ye. 
were  in  high  favor 
charm  and  the  opp 
exquisitely  finished 
should  still  be  pla. 


ice  of 


.uBjpa;pf^^f^^-,,oisni^ 

ja;BA\.  aq; 

ut    ;q3n      ^  'uBissti-a 

a;ou  q;q3p\  '""^^  ^^^  ,^    -ao" 

q;  '.n^j  o;  a^  ,^^^^  aui^s 

':u,sig3m    -l^^^^.^j^     ■''''! 
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Digitized  by  the  Internet  Arciiive 

in  2007  witin  funding  from 

IVIicrosoft  Corporation 


littp://www.arcliive.org/details/earlycorrespondeOObuloiala 


M 


Max  Reger  has  accepted  the  position  of  con- 
ductor of  the  Meiningen  Court  Orchestra  and  he 
will  leave  Leipsic  and  take  up  his  domicile  in 
Meiningen  next  autumn  at  the  beginning  of  the 
season.  Twenty-five  years  ago  Meiningen's  or- 
chestra, like  its  theater,  was  looked  upon  as  a  model 
organization.  Hans  Vo^  Biilow,  during  the  four 
years  that  he  was  its  conductor,  brought  it  up  to 
the  highest  pitch  of  efficacy.  At  that  time — from 
1880  to  1885 — Brahms  was  a  frequent  visitor  to 
Meiningen,  he  having  found  in  Biilow  a  most 
ardent  disciple.  Billow's  successor,  Fritz  Stein- 
bach,  although  an  excellent  conductor,  proved  un- 
able to  inaintain  the  high  standard  that  Biilow  had 
set  up,  and  the  same  is  true  of  the  late  Wilhelm 
Berger.  The  Meiningers  now  are  looking  forward 
to  the  advent  of  Reger,  hoping  that  his  coming  will 
mark  a  new  era  in  the  musical  life  of  that  little 
town.  Long  before  the  regime  of  Hans  von 
Biilow,  the  Meiningen  Orchestra  was  known  as  an 
excellent  body  of  musicians ;  Louis  Spohr,  Franz 
Liszt,  Richard  Wagner  and  Johannes  Brahms  con- 
ducted there  on  special  occasions.  The  late  Rich- 
ard Muehlfeld,  clarinet  player  of  the  Meiningen 
Orchestra,  was  considered  the  greatest  clarinet  vir- 
tuoso of  his  day.  It  was  in  Meiningen  that  Richard 
Strauss  first  won  his  spurs  as  a  conductor,  for  he 
lived  there  several  years,  as  a  pupil  of  von  Biilow, 
and  assistant  conductor  of  the  orchestra. 


'^  y^     AC^^t^y  0^*^^^^'-€^ 


Nach  dnem  Aguarell  von  Fran  v.  Liittichau.. 

Gravure  MeiseniachRinarthftCc 


The 

Early  Correspondence 

of 

Hans  von  Btilow 


Edited 

by 

His   Widow 


Selected  and  Translated  into  English 
By  Constance  Bache 


With  I'wo  'Portraits 


New  York 
D,  Appleton  and  Company 


[AU  rights  resetved."] 


LIBRARY 

UNIVERSITY"  (iV  TMJFORIV 


PREFACE  TO   THE   GERMAN  EDITION. 


"We  seem  to  have  known  but  little,  until  now,  of  the  first  five-and- 
tweHty  years  of  Hans  von  Billow's  life,  beyond  a  few  general  dates. 
Whether  and  how  far  the  process  of  development  of  the  artist 
and  of  the  character  may  arouse  the  sympathy  of  the  world,  it  is 
impossible  for  a  single  individual  to  decide.  But  there  is  no  doubt 
that  the  picture  of  the  transformation  period  of  his  life,  in  con- 
junction with  all  he  became,  when  fully  developed,  both  to  Art  and 
to  his  own  day,  is  an  important  and  even  indispensable  contribu- 
tion towards  a  correct  estimate  of  him.  An  intimate  knowledge 
of  the  soil  which  produced  him,  of  the  atmosphere  which  sur- 
rounded him,  of  the  impressions  which  he  received,  will  help  us 
to  understand  him  better,  to  follow  the  often  apparently  com- 
plicated lines  of  what  he  felt  and  said,  and  will  also  help  us  to 
apprehend  him,  where  a  hasty  and  fragmentary  impression  seemed 
likely  to  confuse,  rather  than  to  satisfy,  one's  judgment.  And 
therefore  I  feel  it  to  be  my  duty  not  to  hesitate  in  bringing  out 
these  letters  of  my  husband,  in  order  that  those  who  were  in  direct 
touch  with  Billow's  personality  both  in  Art  and  life,  and  who  felt 
a  degree  of  sympathy  with  him  which  must  of  necessity  be  want- 
ing to  a  later  generation,  should  have  this  help. 

The  chief  importance  of  this  work  lies  in  the  biographical 
details  which  the  letters  contain,  and  these  are  of  all  the  more 


VI  PREFACE  TO   THE   GERMAN   EDITION. 

value  because  Biilow,  with  his  ever-restless  and  onward- striving 
mind,  was  always  averse  to  retrospective  contemplation,  and  there- 
fore left  behind  him  but  few  indications  as  to  his  life,  with  the 
exception  of  transient  notes  in  later  years.  '  Life  is  too  short  for 
reflection ;  il  ne  faut  pas  remuer  le  pass^ ;  it  is  better  to  utilise  the 
time  for  fresh  work ' ;  these  were  the  things  he  was  in  the  habit  of 
saying  when  people  approached  him  on  the  subject  of  '  Memoirs,' 
*  Eecollections,'  etc. 

There  is  no  trace  to  be  found  of  the  diaries  which,  at  his 
mother's  express  wish,  though  to  him  very  much  against  the  grain, 
he  was  in  the  habit  of  keeping  in  his  early  youth.  Nor  are  there 
any  rough  copies  of  letters  or  rough  drafts — such  as  there  are,  for 
instance,  of  Schumann  or  Liszt,  which  could  be  of  use  in  bringing 
out  the  letters  of  those  masters.  There  is  every  ground  for  think- 
ing that  Billow's  letters  were  written  straight  off,  spontaneously, 
according  to  the  feelings  and  mood  of  the  moment.  Moreover  it 
would  have  been  an  impossibility  to  do  otherwise;  it  would  be 
inconceivable  that  he  could  write  down  twice  over  such  a 
voluminous  and  ample  correspondence,  whilst  at  the  same  time 
he  was  doing  so  very  much,  not  only  in  the  domain  of  Music,  but 
also  in  that  of  Art  and  of  learning.  It  was  only  in  the  last  ten 
years  of  his  life  that  he  occasionally  had  copies  of  his  letters 
made  for  some  special  reason. 

He  wrote  a  small,  clear,  regular  hand,  which  changed  but  little 
with  the  course  of  years,  and  but  rarely  made  a  mistake  or  an 
erasion.  Thus  a  letter  of  Billow's,  even  outwardly,  bears  witness 
to  his  inborn  sense  for  the  beautiful  and  aristocratic  in  form, 
satisfying  the  eye  as  well  as  the  mind,  without  puzzling  the  former 
by  riddles  such  as  now  and  then  perplex  the  latter.  Whoever 
will  pass  in  review  Billow's  life  in  the  light  of  his  writings  will 
meet  such  riddles,  and  will  more  than  once  feel  the  most  elevated 
frame  of  mind  suddenly  interrupted  by  them.     But  it  would  be 


PREFACE  TO  THE   GERMAN   EDITION.  VU 

misconstruing  the  right  to  truth,  it  would  be  incompletely 
estimating  the  historical  personality  of  Hans  von  Biilow,  if  one 
perhaps  timidly  avoided  them.  This  personality  can  lose  nothing 
of  its  beacon-power  by  a  flashing  word  here,  or  a  contradiction 
there ;  the  few  dark  touches  do  but  make  it  gain  in  corporeality, 
and  thus  bring  it  nearer  to  the  heart,  for  they  just  go  hand-in- 
hand  with  all  that  was  most  worthy  of  honour  in  him. 

A  passionate  desire,  emanating  from  a  profound  sense  of  truth 
and  justice,  to  help  on  any  true  artist-nature — and  this  long  before 
the  tide  of  fashion  had  turned  in  its  favour ;  the  manner  in  which 
he  combated  whatsoever  stood  in  his  way ;  the  personal  courage 
which  overlooked  all  difficulties,  or  even  the  disadvantage  which 
might  accrue  to  himself  from  the  position  he  had  taken  up — these 
are  some  of  Billow's  most  striking  characteristics.  They  can  be 
traced  through  his  whole  life,  and  are  the  basis  of  all  those  words 
and  actions  which  have  been  set  down  as  '  inconsistencies '  by 
those  who  held  aloof  from  him.  They  are  the  guides  that  enable 
us  to  read  his  life  aright,  and  fully  explain  those  sides  of  his 
character  which  need  any  explanation. 

Lives  of  great  men  all  remind  us 

We  can  make  our  lives  sublime, 
And,  departing,  leave  behind  us 

Footprints  on  the  sands  of  time  ; — 

Footprints,  that  perhaps  another, 

Sailing  o'er  life's  solemn  main, 
A  forlorn  and  shipwrecked  brother, 

Seeing,  shall  take  heart  again. 

MARIE  VOX  BULOW. 

Hamburg,  Autumn  1895. 


PREFACE    TO    THE   ENGLISH   EDITION. 


The  contents  of  the  present  volume  are  a  selection  from  two 
volumes  of  Letters  brought  out  in  Germany  by  Marie  von  Biilow. 
To  make  a  selection  from  the  240  original  letters  has  been 
deemed  advisable,  as  there  are  many  of  them  which,  whilst 
interesting  to  Billow's  fellow-countrymen,  would  hardly  appeal 
to  the  general  English  reader.  At  the  same  time  nothing  has 
been  omitted  that  is  of  vital  interest  or  importance  in  enabling 
us  to  understand  the  sequence  of  events  which  moulded  Billow's 
youthful  life  and  decided  his  career.  I  may  add  that  Frau 
Marie  von  Billow  has  authorised  and  approved  such  condensation 
as  I  have  thought  it  necessary  to  make. 

Hans  von  Billow  has  been,  with  one  exception,  the  "best  abused" 
musician  of  our  day.  He  has  been  more  misunderstood,  more 
laughed  at,  and  even  sneered  at,  than  any  other  except  Wagner. 
The  reasons  for  this  judgment  are  superficial,  and  are  not  far 
to  seek.  Billow  had  a  hasty  tongue,  and  he  was  apt  to  say 
exactly  what  he  meant,  without  softening  down  the  edges.  Wagner 
did  just  the  same ;  and  think  of  the  "  Schimpfwbrterbilcher " 
that  his  enemies  published  about  him !  These  are  the  things 
that  stick  fast  in  the  public  mind  until — the  tide  of  fashion 
turns  the  other  way,  and  then — well,  then  they  are  forgotten. 
Twenty  years  have  cleared  away  many  of  the  mists  and  clouds 
that  hung  over  Baireuth,  and  have  shown  us  the  man  as  he  was, 
both   good  and  bad.     I  believe  that  these  Letters  will  do  more 


X  PREFACE  TO  THE  ENGLISH  EDITION. 

than  anything  else  to  clear  away  the  atmosphere  of  mist  and 
cloud  that  has  hung  around  Billow's  name,  for  they  let  us  see 
behind  the  veil,  and  the  real  man  is  revealed  to  us.  It  must  be 
borne  in  mind  that  very  many  of  these  letters  are  to  his  parents, 
and  in  these  he  gives  the  rein  to  his  aspirations,  disappointments, 
and  confidences,  with  a  naivete  and  absolute  truthfulness  rare 
even  between  parent  and  child. 

The  turning-point  of  his  life,  when  he  undertakes  that  journey 
to  Wagner  on  foot,  "to  see  if  he  has  the  necessary  strength  of 
endurance";  the  heart-broken  letters  that  follow  his  father's 
sudden  death;  the  exciting  and  characteristic  extremes  of  the 
letters  that  describe  his  first  experiences  in  concert-giving — these 
are  among  the  gems  of  the  collection. 

A  good  many  French  words  appear  in  the  course  of  the  Letters. 
They  are,  almost  without  exception,  Billow's  own  expressions 
interpolated  into  German  letters ;  these  I  have  therefore  retained. 
A  few  of  his  letters,  notably  those  to  Franz  Liszt  who  wrote 
in  French  by  preference,  are  written  in  that  language,  and  in 
those  I  have  merely  retained  such  expressions  as  seemed  to  be 
more  "  telling  "  in  French  than  in  a  translation. 

It  will  be  seen  from  the  Letters  how  Billow  suffered  from  ill- 
health,  more  or  less,  all  his  life ;  and  this,  added  to  an  intensely 
nervous,  highly-strung  temperament,  at  length  broke  him  down. 
In  1894  he  was  taken,  ill  as  he  then  was,  to  Cairo,  to  see  what 
the  change  might  do  for  him.  But  this  forlorn  hope  of  restor- 
ing his  shattered  health  was,  alas,  not  realised,  and  he  expired 
there,  a  few  days  after  his  arrival,  on  the  12th  of  February  1894. 
His  remains  were  brought  to  Hamburg,  the  city  of  his  adoption 
and  of  his  preference,  to  be  cremated,  according  to  the  great 
Master's  own  desire. 

CONSTANCE  BACHE. 
London,  Autumn,  1896. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER 

PAGE 

Introduction    ....... 

1 

I. 

Dresden— Leipzig  :  1830-1846. 

To  his  Mother          ...... 

9 

To  the  same             ...... 

10 

To  the  same             ...... 

11 

II. 

Stuttgart  :  Autumn  1846— Spring  1848. 

To  Friedrich  Wieck             ..... 

17 

To  his  Mother          ...... 

19 

To  the  same              ...... 

20 

To  Joachim  Kaff      ...... 

20 

III. 

Leipzig  University  :  Spring  1848 — Autumn  1849. 

To  his  Mother          ...... 

26 

To  the  same             ...... 

31 

To  the  same             ...... 

32 

To  the  same             ...*., 

34 

To  the  same             ...... 

36 

IV. 

Berlin  University  :  Autumn  1849— Summer  1850. 

To  his  Mother          ...... 

39 

To  the  same             ...... 

40 

V. 

Switzerland  :  Autumn  1850 — Summer  1851. 

To  his  Mother          ...... 

45 

Richard  "Wagner  to  Franziska  von  Billow 

49 

Franz  Liszt  to  Franziska  von  Biilow    . 

52 

To  his  Sister            ...... 

53 

To  his  Mother          .                        .... 

54 

To  his  Father           ...... 

57 

To  the  same             ...... 

59 

To  the  same             ...... 

61 

To  the  same             ,...., 

62 

Xll 


CONTENTS. 


V.  Switzerland — continued. 

To  his  Father 

To  the  same 

Franz  Liszt  to  Eduard  von  Billow 
Eduard  to  Ernst  von  Billow 

To  his  Sister 

To  his  Father 

To  the  same 

To  his  Mother 

To  the  same 

Eduard  to  Ernst  von  Billow 

To  his  Sister 

VI.  Weimar  :  Summer  1851— Winter  1853 

To  his  Father 

To  Franz  Liszt 

To  his  Father 

To  his  Mother 

To  the  same 

To  his  Father 

To  his  Mother 

To  his  Father 

To  his  Mother 

To  Theodor  Uhlig 

To  his  Father 

To  Frau  Ritter 

To  his  Father 

To  Theodor  Uhlig 

To  his  Sister 

To  Theodor  Uhlig 

To  his  Mother 

To  his  Father 

To  the  same 

To  the  same 

Franziska  von  Billow  to  her  Daughter 

To  Peter  Cornelius 

To  his  Sister 

To  his  Mother 

To  the  same 

To  his  Father 

To  the  same 

Eduard  to  Ernst  von  Billow 
Franziska  von  Billow  to  her  Daughter 


CONTENTS. 


XIU 


CHAFIER 

VII.  Austria  :  Spring — Sttmmer  1853. 

To  his  Mother  .... 

Franziska  von  Biilow  to  her  Daughter 
Franz  Liszt  to  Franziska  von  Biilow 

To  his  Mother 

To  the  same 

To  his  Father 

To  the  same 

To  the  same 

To  his  Mother 

To  the  same 

To  the  same 

VIII.  Carlsruhe — Otlishausen  :  Autumn  1853. 

To  Richard  Pohl 
To  his  Mother 
To  his  Sister 
To  Joachim  Raff 
To  his  Mother 
To  Franz  Liszt 

IX.  North  Germany  :  Winter  1853— Spring  1854. 
To  his  Mother 
To  the  same 
To  Franz  Liszt 
To  his  Mother 
To  the  same 
To  Frau  von  Milde 
To  his  Mother 
To  the  same 
To  the  same 
To  the  same 

X.  Dresden — Chocieszewice — Berlin  ;  Spring  1854- 
To  Franz  Liszt 
To  the  same 
To  the  same 
To  Alexander  Ritter 

Heotor  Berlioz  to  Hans  von  Biilow 

To  the  same 
To  Franz  Liszt 
To  his  Mother 
To  the  same 
To  the  same 
To  his  Sister 


Winter  1855 


XIV 


CONTENTS. 


X.  Dresden — continued. 

To  his  Mother 

.       219 

To  his  Sister       .     . 

.       222 

To  Franz  Liszt 

,       224 

To  his  Mother 

.       227 

To  the  same 

.       228 

To  the  same 

.       231 

To  the  same 

.       234 

To  the  same 

.      237 

To  Alexander  Ritter 

.       239 

To  Madame  Laussot 

.      240 

XI.  Breslatt—Posen— Berlin  : 

Winter— Spring  1855. 

To  his  Mother 

. 

.      247 

Franziska  von  Billow  to  her  Daughter 

.      247 

To  his  Mother 

. 

.      248 

To  Franz  Liszt 

.      250 

To  Louis  Kohler 

.       254 

Franz  Liszt  to  Louis  Kohler    .            .            .            . 

.       254 

Franziska  von  Biilow  to  her  Daughter             ,            , 

.      255 

To  his  Sister 

1 

.      256 

Franziska  tou  Biilow  to  her  Daughter            .            , 

.      257 

ILLUSTRATIONS. 


L  Hans  Guido  von  Bulow  in  Boyhood  {from  a  tcater-eolour  hy 

Frau  von  Liittichau)      .....   {Frontispiece) 

IL  Hans  Guido  von  Bulow  at  thk  Age  op  Twenty-five  (painted 

by  W.  StrecJcfass  in  1855)  ,  .  .  Toface}>age  117 


INTRODUCTION 


HANS    VON    B0LOW. 


INTRODUCTION. 

From  the  family  book  of  the  von  Biilows  we  learn  that  Ernst  Heinrich 
Adolph,  the  grandfather  of  the  subject  of  the  present  volume,  was  born 
on  the  21st  July  1766,  and  brought  up  for  the  army.  Wounded  in 
the  battle  of  Smolensk,  he  received  the  Royal  8axon  Order  of  Henry 
and  the  Imperial  French  Order  of  the  Legion  of  Honour,  was  pensioned 
off  after  peace  was  proclaimed,  and  resided  in  Dresden  until  his  death 
in  1842. 

Of  his  three  sons,  one  only  grew  to  manhood — Carl  Eduard,  who  was 
born  in  the  year  1803.  He  was  destined  for  the  mercantile  line,  and 
with  this  view  was  put  to  work  for  some  time  in  various  banking 
houses.  But  his  tastes  lay  in  other  directions,  and  he  went  for  some 
years  to  the  University  of  Leipzig,  where  he  made  a  special  study  of 
the  dead  languages.  In  the  year  1828  he  returned  to  Dresden,  and 
devoted  himself  thenceforth  exclusively  to  the  career  of  letters. 

In  the  year  1828  Eduard  married  Franziska  Elisabeth  Stoll,  who  was 
born  at  Leipzig  in  the  year  1800;  and  there  she  had  lived  for  many  years 
in  the  house  of  her  celebrated  elder  sister  and  the  latter's  husband,  Herr 
Kammerrath  Frege,  helping  them  in  the  education  of  their  son  Woldemar. 
Her  immense  talents,  lively  disposition,  and  good  musical  education 
enabled  her  to  exercise  a  powerful  influence  over  the  young  Woldemar, 
who  preserved  throughout  his  life  a  faithful  and  grateful  feeling  towards 
his  aunt.  Franziska  left  this  home  for  Dresden,  on  her  marriage  with 
Eduard  von  Biilow. 

Here  the  young  couple  lived  in  the  midst  of  a  pleasant  literary  and 
artistic  circle,  which  included  such  names  as  Herr  von  Liittichau,  the 
Intendant  of  the  Dresden  Theatre,  and  his  accomplished  wife,  Countess 
Hahn-Hahn,  the  widowed  Countess  Biilow-Dennewitz  with  her  daughter 
Louise,  besides  Eduard's  faithful  friend  Tieck.  In  the  Biilow  family 
music  played  always  a  coui-picuous  part,  Franziska  having  regular  prac- 


4  HANS  VON  BOLOW. 

tising  reunions  with  the  violoncellist  Henselt,  who  afterwards  became 
the  first  piano  teacher  of  her  son  Hans. 

On  the  8th  January  1830  Hans  Guido  von  Biilow  was  born  at  19 
Kohlmarkt,  Dresden- Altstadt,  now  known  as  12  Kornerstrasse,  at  the 
corner  diagonally  opposite  to  the  house  where  Theodor  Ivorner  was  born. 
A  weakling  from  his  very  birth,  Hans  (as  we  shall  see  from  his  later 
letters)  never  enjoyed  robust  health.  Five  times,  as  his  mother  related 
in  after  years,  he  suffered  from  brain  fever,  although  some  doctors  main- 
tained that,  had  that  been  so,  it  would  have  been  impossible  for  him  to 
cultivate  that  marvellous  memory,  and  to  attain  to  such  a  degree  of 
mental  development  as  he  actually  did. 

Be  that  as  it  may,  Hans  and  his  sister  Isidora,  three  years  younger 
than  himself,  did  not,  either  of  them,  enjoy  a  happy  childhood.  For, 
apart  from  physical  weakness — which  however  did  not  prevent  the  boy 
from  keeping  pace  with  his  schoolfellows  in  the  examinations,  and  even 
surpassing  most  of  them — the  sharp  eyes  of  the  children  were  not  long 
in  discerning  the  differences  and  want  of  harmony  in  the  characters  of 
their  parents.  This  point  cannot  remain  unmentioned,  because  it 
exercised  a  deep  influence  on  the  future  man's  destiny,  and  it  forms  too 
important  a  factor  in  Hans  von  Billow's  life  and  experience  to  be  passed 
over  in  silence. 

Franziska's  passionate  character,  to  which  from  her  childhood  up  she 
had  given  way,  unrestrained  by  education  and  position ;  her  religious- 
ness, which  to  her  appeared  inseparable  from  prescribed  forms  ;  her  ever- 
increasing  preference  for  Catholicism,  to  which  she  finally  went  over  at 
the  ripe  age  of  eighty -four ;  her  sympathy  for  the  Conservative  side  in 
politics ;  the  absence,  as  it  seems,  of  a  certain  cheerful  element  in  her 
nature, — all  this  stands  out  in  glaring  contrast  to  Eduard's  amiable, 
fantastic  nature,  his  enthusiasm  for  the  ideas  of  freedom  with  which  at 
that  time  all  the  rising  generation  was  filled,  his  antipathy  to  the 
clerical  party  and  to  the  condition  of  things  in  the  Germany  of  that  day, 
which  betrayed  itself,  amongst  other  things,  by  his  disinclination  to 
acknowledge  himself  as  the  subject  of  any  individual  German  State. 

Something  of  an  almost  effeminate  gentleness  and  nervousness,  com- 
bined with  a  hot,  hasty  temperament  and  a  want  of  strength  of  will, — 
these  seem  to  have  constituted  the  shady  side  of  what  was  otherwise  such 
an  attractive  personality,  and  it  was  these  which  must  have  made  the 
daily  intercourse  with  him  somewhat  difiicult. 

The  children  were  not  at  all  systematically  educated  by  their  parents, 
except  as  regards  the  French  language,  for  which  Franziska  had  such  a 
great  liking  that  she  made  them  learn  it  thoroughly  at  a  very  early  age. 

When  he  was  nine  years  old,  Hans  received  his  first  pianoforte  lessons 


INTRODUCTION.  5 

from  Herr  Heuselt  (already  mentioned).  Louise  von  Biilow,  who 
became  afterwards  Eduard's  second  wife,  often  visited  at  their  house 
in  those  days,  and  remembers  hearing  that  when  the  boy  was  con- 
fined to  the  house  or  to  bed  by  illness,  as  was  frequently  the  case, 
his  favourite  occupation  was  music-reading.  She  also  relates  that  he 
often  went  to  the  Catholic  Church  to  hear  the  fine  music  there,  and  when 
he  came  home  he  would  play  from  memory  any  melodies  that  particu- 
larly pleased  him.  Herr  Henselt  soon  declared  that  he  could  teach  the 
boy  nothing  more,  and  he  was  then  placed  under  Fraulein  Schmiedel  for 
piano  lessons,  and  Herr  Eberwein  for  theory. 

"  All  these  indications  of  a  special  gift  for  music,"  wrote  Louise  von 
Biilow,  "  delighted  his  parents,  but  it  never  occurred  to  them  to  bring 
up  their  son  as  an  artist,  especially  as  he  was  distinguishing  himself  at 
the  Dresden  Gymnasium,  and  learned  with  the  utmost  rapidity  what  to 
other  boys  cost  great  labour  and  pains.  His  parents,  especially  his 
mother,  thought  that  great  musical  talent  would  beautify  his  life,  would 
keep  him  away  from  many  useless,  foolish  things,  and  would  always 
ensure  him  an  agreeable  position  in  society." 

It  must  have  been  between  the  years  1842  and  1844  that  Franziska 
made  Liszt's  acquaintance,  as  it  was  about  that  time  that  he  was  playing 
in  Dresden,  arousing  enormous  enthusiasm.  He  also  went  much  into 
society,  and  the  Biilow  family  also  enjoyed  visits  from  him.  It  was 
probably  at  that  time  that  Liszt,  at  an  evening  party  at  a  house  close  by, 
declared  that  he  would  only  play  if  they  fetched  the  little  Biilow,  which 
was  of  course  immediately  done,  although  the  little  fellow  had  already 
gone  to  bed. 

It  was  in  the  lessons  with  Fraulein  Schmiedel  that  a  friendship  was 
begun,  which  accompanied  Hans  von  Biilow  faithfully  throughout  his 
whole  life  :  this  was  with  Miss  Taylor,  afterwards  Madame  Laussot,  and 
now  the  widow  of  the  eminent  writer  Karl  Hillebrand,  a  widely-known 
and  highlj'-esteemed  woman,  whose  great  talents,  especially  in  music, 
and  whose  enthusiasm  for  art,  and  noble  nature,  procured  her  the  friend- 
ship and  respect  of  all  the  greatest  musicians  of  the  last  forty  years. 
And  yet  another  important  friendship  of  Billow's  must  be  mentioned 
here,  namely,  that  with  the  brothers  Karl  and  Alexander  Kitter.  This 
friendship  exercised  an  immense  influence,  musically,  on  Billow's  youth. 
The  mother  of  the  two  Eitters — a  well-to-do  widow  from  Narwa,  who  had 
settled  down  in  Dresden — lived  a  very  retired  life,  and  there  was  no 
intercourse  between  her  and  the  Biilow  family.  But  from  a  mother 
who,  firmly  believing  in  the  genius  of  Richard  Wagner,  had  helped  him 
over  his  hardest  years  of  exile,  her  sons  had  inherited  a  glowing  enthu- 
siasm for  art,  and  this  knit  together  the  youthful  hearts  of  the  three 


b  HANS   VON   BiJLOW. 

school  friends,  Hans  and  the  two  Ritters.  In  common  with  them,  he 
received  the  first  great  musical  impression  of  his  life,  when  *  Rienzi ' 
was  performed  for  the  first  time  in  Dresden  in  the  year  1842.  What 
was  then  written  in  letters  of  flame  on  his  youthful  fancy  was  extin- 
guished only  with  his  last  breath. 

During  his  schooldays  in  Dresden,  from  1840-45,  Hans  frequently 
visited  his  relations,  the  Freges,  in  Leipzig.  Woldemar,  now  grown  to 
man's  estate,  had  become  Professor  of  Law  at  the  Leipzig  University, 
and  had  married  Livia  Gerhardt  on  her  eighteenth  birthday.  In  spite 
of  her  extreme  youth,  she  had  already  attained  notice  as  a  talented 
singer;  she  was  also  on  terms  of  friendship  with  Mendelssohn,  who 
dedicated  many  of  his  works  to  her.  The  young  couple  occupied  half 
of  the  old  family  house  of  the  Freges,  Woldemar's  parents  living  in  the 
other  portion. 

Further  mention  will  be  made  of  this  later  on,  at  the  time  when 
Hans  came  to  spend  the  University  period  of  his  life  with  them. 


DRESDEN— LEIPZIG 


CHAPTER  I. 

DRESDEN— LEIPZIG. 

1830—1846. 

TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Leipzig,  23rd  May  1841. 
Dear  Mamma, 

So  at  last  you  have  decided  to  go  to  Baden-Baden,  to  get 
yourself  well  and  strong  again.  I  am  always  so  glad  of  a  letter  from  you, 
as  I  am  longing  to  know  how  you  are,  etc.  Papa  was  here  on  Monday  and 
Tuesday,  and  wanted  to  take  me  with  him,  but  has  after  all  left  me  here 
at  the  general  request.  I  am  now  quite  settled ;  I  have  two  lessons  a 
week  from  Herr  Hesse,  who  corrects  my  work,  and  gives  me  fresh  work 
to  do ;  I  also  have  French  lessons  every  day  from  Fraulein  Hackstadt. 
I  have  lots  of  amusement  at  the  riders'  booth  and  in  a  panorama,  and  I 
have  been  to  a  Bellini  opera  !  The  best  first — '  i  Capuleti  et  i  Montechi  ! ' 
0,  when  I  heard  that  this  heavenly  opera  was  going  to  be  given,  I  was 
quite  beside  myself  for  joy,  for  I  could  already  flatter  myself  with  hope, 
as  Aunt  had  promised  to  send  me  to  a  Bellini  opera.  Demoiselle  Kreutzer 
(daughter  of  the  Kapellmeister)  was  starring  it  here  from  the  Cologne 
Theatre,  and  played  Julia,  and  she  will  also  play  in  '  Robert  le  Diable,' 
and  in  her  father's  '  Nachtlager '  (so  she  says).  She  pleased  me  very 
much ;  her  voice  and  appearance  are  beautiful,  only  she  makes  such  faces 
when  she  sings.  Romeo,  Madame  Schmitdgen,  I  did  not  like.  The 
three  men  I  liked.  But  the  choruses  were  very  badly  sung;  I  had 
expected  them  to  be  much  better.  At  the  riding  booth  they  did  some 
beautiful  and  extraordinarily  diflBcult  athletic  exercises  (Glohia  is  mere 
child's  play  in  comparison),  but  these  would  not  interest  you,  so  I  shall 
only  say  that  Demoiselle  Louise  Zischek  is  a  wonderfully  charming  and 
graceful  rider ;  there  are  Bedouins,  and  the  training  of  the  horses  is  very 
good,  and  the  decorations  are  very  pretty.  T  have  been  to  a  panorama 
by  Enslen,  '  A  Journey  to  Germany  and  Italy.'      One  quite  imagines 


10  HANS  VON  BULOW. 

oneself  in  the  town  and  neighbourhood.  It  interested  me  very  much, 
although  I  don't  care  particularly  about  pictures,  especially  of  Italy. 
The  lovely  cities  of  Naples,  Venice,  Florence,  Rome,  and  the  glorious 
monuments  of  Pompeii,  and  Berlin  amongst  the  German  cities,  pleased 
me  most  of  all.  Aunt  sends  you  her  best  love,  and  is  going  to  write  to 
you  soon.     Goodbye,  dear  Mamma,  and  continue  to  love — 

Your  obedient  Son, 

Hans  von  Bulow. 

I  forgot  to  tell  you  that  I  have  got  to  know  the  celebrated  actress, 
Madame  Crelinger  and  her  daughter,  and  have  heard  Clara  Schumann, 
who  unfortunately  only  accompanied  Livia. 

From  that  early  period  there  are  but  two  letters  extant.  We  have  contented 
ourselves  with  taking  the  second  of  these,  as  being  the  more  interesting.  We 
now  pass  on  to  the  year  1844,  when,  still  in  Leipzig,  he  writes  to  his  mother 
as  follows,  on  the  24th  July  : — 

I  must  tell  you  plainly  that  I  don't  at  all  want  to  go  to  Tetschen 
even  for  a  couple  of  days,  as  I  can  enjoy  fresh  air  here  also,  and  it  is 
extremely  necessary  for  me  to  stay  as  long  as  possible  in  Leipzig,  both  on 
account  of  the  Rakoczy-cure  and  the  drilling  lessons,  and  also  on  account 
of  the  music,  as  it  is  of  the  utmost  use  to  me  to  hear  Madame  Schumann, 
and  this  more  than  anything  else  will  urge  me  on  to  more  practice.  I 
am  also  reading  French,  and  Aunt  borrows  Racine,  Moliere,  Florian,  and 
Voltaire  for  me,  all  of  which  I  find  rather  tedious, 

I  am  keeping  my  diary,  but  I  don't  know  in  the  least  how  to 
*  meditate  a  little  and  then  write  it  down,'  as  you  recommend.  How  is 
the  theatre  going  on  now  the  Lipinskis  are  gone  ? 

I  am  playing  Bach  Fugues,  '  Pofeme  d'amour,'  Mayer's  Studies, 
Beethoven's  D  minor  and  C  sharp  minor  Sonatas,  and  keeping  up  other 
pieces,  such  as  Hummel's  A  minor  Concerto  and  Septet. 

And  on  the  9th  May  1845  he  makes  the  following  remarks  about  his  music 
in  a  letter  to  his  mother,  also  from  Leipzig  : — 

I  practise  steadily  two  hours  a  day,  and  have  got  up  again  what  I 
had  lost  by  a  few  days'  stoppage.  I  am  playing  Chopin,  Henselt,  Bach 
and  Hummel,  and  have  begun  to  study  the  Fantasia  '  Oberon's  Magic 
Horn.' 

I   have  already  had  two  lessons  from   Herr  Hauptmann.*     I   like 

*  Moritz  Hauptmann  (1792-1868),  composer,  Master  of  Theory,  Cantor  of  the 
Thomaaschule,  and  teacher  at  the  Leipzig  Conservatoire, 


DRESDEN — LEIPZIG.  11 

him  very  much ;  he  is  very  friendly,  and  it  gives  me  almost  more  pleasure 
to  learn  from  him  than  from  Herr  Eherwein.  Yesterday  he  was  pleased 
with  the  exercises  I  had  done  for  him. 

Yesterday  I  went  ticice  to  see  Herr  Plaidy;*  he  was  not  at  home.  I 
begged  for  an  appointment  with  him,  and  he  has  sent  me  word  today  to 
go  to  him  at  six  o'clock. 

P.S. — I  have  begged  Aunt  to  tell  you  whether  I  have  grown  more 
sensible. 

TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Thursday,  t  4.30  in  the  morning^ 
30th  May,  '45. 

Dear  Mamma, 

I  woke  today  exactly  at  four  o'clock,  dressed, 
have  had  already  half  an  hour  in  the  garden,  and  now  come  back  to  finish 
this  letter  to  you,  of  which  I  wrote  a  rough  copy  yesterday.  I  can't 
write  to  you  at  any  other  time,  for  today  is  Aunt's  birthday,  and  we 
want,  if  the  weather  keeps  fine,  to  make  a  party  and  go  to  Halle  and  the 
Giebichenstein,  for  which  we  must  start  by  rail  at  a  quarter  to  eleven. 
I  will  write  to  Isa  about  it  very  soon. 

With  regard  to  my  piano-playing  you  may  set  your  mind  at  ease. 
'  Je  travaille  comme  un  v^gre,^  I  can  truly  say.  Every  morning  I  play 
shake  exercises,  scales,  simple  and  chromatic  of  all  kinds,  exercises  for 
throwing  the  hands  (for  these  I  use  a  Study  of  Moscheles,  one  of  Steibelt, 
and  a  two-part  Fugue  of  Bach's,  which  I  play  with  octaves  in  both  hands  ; 
it  was  Goldschmidtj  who  recommended  me  to  do  this).  Toccatas  of 
Czerny,  which  Herr  Plaid y  gave  me,  and  Moscheles'  and  Chopin's 
Studies ;  so  that  I  don't  find  any  others  of  Bertini,  Cramer,  or  Clementi 
necessary ;  I  have  enough  to  do  with  the  Chopin  Studies,  which  fully 
take  the  place  of  all  these  others,  and  I  hope  you  will  think  I  am  doing 
right.  I  finished  Field's  A  major  Concerto  yesterday ;  I  have  only 
studied  the  first  movement — Herr  Plaidy  thinks  the  others  are  not  worth 
much — and  at  my  next  lesson  I  shall  begin  Mendelssohn's  D  minor 
Concerto.  Besides  these,  I  am  studying  by  myself  Bach's  Fugues, 
Klengel's  Canons,  Oberon's  Zauberhorn,  Hummel's  Fantasia,  a  Beethoven 
Sonata  (the  '  Pastorale,'  in  D  major),  and  am  keeping  up  my  old  pieces, 
such  as  Chopin's  Tarantella  and  Nocturnes,  Henselt's  Variations  and 

*  Louis  Plaidy  (1810-74),  pianoforte  teacher  at  the  Leipzig  Conservatoire, 
t  Probably  5.30. 

X  otto  Goldschmidt  (1829),  pianist,  pupil  of  Mendelssohn,  later  on  married 
Jenny  Lind. 


12  HANS  VON   I3UL0W. 

Friihlingslied,  and  Hummers  B  minor  Concerto  pp.  I  played  Beethoven's 
C  major  Sonata  to  Herr  Hauptmann,  whose  lessons  are  a  great  interest 
and  pleasure  to  me.  He  praised  my  conception  of  it,  and  gave  me  a  few^ 
hints  and  some  advice  now  and  then,  which  it  would  take  too  long  to  tell 
you  about.  Then  I  played  him  a  Fugue  of  Bach's,  in  which  he  found 
fault  with  the  Czerny  edition,  which  gives  it  staccato,  as  I  played  it,  but 
Herr  Hauptmann  thinks  it  would  suit  the  character  of  this  Fugue  (C 
minor)  better  to  play  it  legato. 

Plaidy  is  in  every  respect  a  good  teacher,  and  I  am  convinced  that  I 
shall  be  able  to  learn  much  more  under  his  and  Hauptmann's  tuition, 
with  the  great  encouragement  which  I  get  here  from  the  musical  boys  of 
my  own  age,  than  in  Dresden. 

I  have  often  played  duets  with  Goldschmidt ;  he  has  also  dined 
with  us,  and  is  invited  again  for  next  Sunday  with  Joachim. 

The  piano  from  Klemm  has  been  tuned  again,  but  it  is  in  such  a 
condition  that  one  can  only  play  finger  exercises  on  it,  and  even  that 
is  scarcely  endurable.  For  the  rest,  I  have  gained  in  tone  and  strength 
in  my  playing.  Sometimes  I  borrow  a  Beethoven  Symphony  in  score 
from  Klemm,  which  I  then  study. 

Count  Eeuss,  who  is  in  every  way  extremely  kind  and  friendly  to 
me,  has  given  me  leave  to  practise  on  his  grand  piano,  as  he  is  away  from 
home  nearly  the  whole  day.  It  is  rather  a  stiff  touch  (it  is  an  Irmler), 
and  has  a  magnificent  tone.  It  is  too  stiff  for  the  Count,  and  I  am 
therefore,  as  it  were,  to  break  it  in  for  him.  The  Count  also  played 
duets  with  me  once  when  I  went  to  see  him. 

Chancellor  Miiller  *  from  "Weimar  came  to  call  on  Livia  yesterday, 
who  had  to  occupy  herself  with  him  the  whole  day.  He  sends  you  his 
very  best  remembrances.  He  has  grown  rather  deaf.  He  told  us  a  lot 
of  interesting  things  about  his  life,  and  his  meeting  with  Napoleon, 
which  also  entertained  me  very  much.  Aunt  gave  him  a  little  dinner, 
to  which  Dr.  Auerbach  was  also  invited,  and  I  liked  him  very  much. 
Champagne  and  Maitrank  were  drunk.  I  am  extremely  fond  of  them 
both,  and  hope  that  you  will  also  have  some  of  the  latter  to  enjoy. 

Livia  often  sings;  I  accompany  her,  and  composed  two  songs  for 
her  lately  when  I  lost  a  Vielliehchen.ii  I  read  lately  in  the  Vienna 
paper,  in  the  news  from  Prague:  ^' (Delayed).     Herr  Litolff|  has  given 

*  Friedrich  v.  Miiller  (1779-1849),  Chancellor  of  Weimar,  a  friend  of  Goethe's. 

+  '  Vielliebchen,'  commonly  known  in  English  as  'Fillipine,'  doubtless  a 
corruption  of  the  original. 

X  Henry  Charles  Litolff,  composer  and  celebrated  pianist,  was  born  in  London 
in  1818  ;  died  in  Paris  in  1891.  Was  for  a  long  time  an  intimate  friend  of  the  von 
Billows, 


DEESDEN — LEIPZIG.  13 

five  concerts  with  enormous  success ;  at  the  last  of  them  he  was  assisted 
by  Prume.  He  interested  people  both  by  his  playing  and  compositions, 
as  well  as  by  his  adventurous  life.  He  possesses  uncommon  delicacy, 
and  with  it  great  energy,  and  might  in  many  respects  be  compared  with 
Liszt,  though  in  the  latter  one  recognises  always  the  Hungarian,  in 
Litolff  always  the  Englishman  ! " 

Hiller's  opera  has  been  given  again  in  Dresden  a  few  times,  but 
does  not  seem  to  have  been  well  attended. 

Madame  Birch- Pfeiffer  is  starring  here.  She  has  had  'Thomas 
Tyrnau'  given,  which  has  not  taken  at  all  here.  I  have  been  again 
twice  to  the  theatre — to  the  '  Freischiitz '  and  to  '  Alessandro  Stradella,' — 
a  romantic  opera  by  Flotow,  which  contains  some  pretty,  lively  melodies 
in  the  style  of  Auber. 


STUTTGART 


CHAPTEK  II. 

STUTTGART. 

AUTUMN    1846 — SPRING    1848. 

In  the  year  1846  Eduard  von  Biilow,  with  his  family,  removed  from  Dresden 
to  Stuttgart.  It  was  about  this  time  that,  during  a  summer  holiday  at 
Bingen,  Hans  made  the  acquaintance  of  Joachim  Raft',  the  celebrated  musician 
and  composer,  an  acquaintance  which  ripened  into  a  lifelong  friendship. 
Raff  was  eight  years  older  than  Hans,  so  that  the  latter,  while  on  a  par  with 
him  as  a  friend,  was  able  to  look  up  to  him  as  a  mentor  in  music.  In 
Stuttgart  also  about  this  time  Hans  got  to  know  Molique,  then  just 
approaching  the  zenith  of  his  fame  as  a  violinist,  and  in  his  house  Biilow 
spent  many  happy  hours,  and  played  much  with  the  Virtuoso.  One  of 
Molique's  daughters,  writing  of  those  days,  says  :  "  There  was  nothing 
angular  or  helpless  about  Biilow,  When  he  was  at  the  piano,  one  soon  saw 
that  it  was  a  young  Master  who  was  in  command  of  the  instrument." 

The  Billows  left  Stuttgart  in  1848  and  returned  to  Dresden. 

The  following  letter,  giving  Hans'  first  impressions  of  Stuttgart  life,  is  the 
only  one  obtainable  of  the  year  1846  : — 


*T0  FRIEDRICH  WIECK  f  (Dresden). 

Stuttgart,  29th  September  1846. 
Dear  Sir  and  Master, 

You  wished  me  to  write  to  you  from  Stuttgart, 
and  I  avail  myself  of  this  permission  in  order  to  thank  you  for  your 
kind  letter  of  introduction  to  Herr  Concertmeister  Molique.  I  went  to 
see  him  shortly  after  my  arrival;  my  playing  seemed  to  please  him;  at 
any  rate  he  spoke  in  terms  of  praise  of  it,  and  said  he  would  write  to 
you  himself.  He  gave  me  two  Sonatas  of  his  own  composition  to  take 
away  with  me,  and  says  he  will  play  them  with  me.     I  am  now  busy 

*  Taken  from  Kohnt's  'Friedrich  Wieck,'  Pierson,  Dresden, 
f  Friedrich  Wieck  (1785-1873),  pianoforte  teacher,  father  of  Clara  Schumann, 

B 


18  HANS    VON   BULOW. 

studying  them ;  they  are  certainly  difficult,  but  quite  suitable  to  the 
piano,  and  extremely  beautiful,  so  much  so  that  one  can  truly  say  that 
no  such  grand  duets  for  piano  and  violin  have  appeared  since  Beethoven. 
I  am  surprised  that  they  are  not  yet  better  known,  and  I  much  wish 
that  you  could  get  to  know  them.  He  has  begged  me  to  go  and  see  him 
often,  and  I  have  to  play  a  good  deal  before  his  daughter,  who  loves 
music,  and  who  plays  with  much  facility  and  spirit,  although  she 
complains  that  she  has  had  no  opportunity  here  of  a  good  training 
in  piano-playing.  The  pianist  Kriiger  *  is  away.  Concertmeister 
Bohrer's  t  wife  and  son  are  considered  the  best  pianists  here  ;  I  have 
not  yet  heard  them,  but  Molique  thinks  the  wife  is  only  a  drawing-room 
player,  and  that  the  son  (who  plays  in  a  blurred  and  unclear  manner)  is 
unworthy  of  mention.  There  is  also  Madame  Heinrich  here,  who  gives 
lessons,  and  who  studied  in  Paris  with  Chopin. 

Just  lately  I  saw  Kapellmeister  Benedict  J  from  London,  Avhose 
father  is  a  banker  here.  He  came  to  Molique's  to  hear  the  hitter's  new 
Trio,  a  really  grand,  original,  and  well  worked-out  composition,  far 
surpassing  the  Sonatas  in  wealth  and  beauty  of  ideas.  The  piano  part 
is  very  difficult,  and  was  played  by  his  daughter  in  a  very  finished 
manner.  Benedict  stays  here  some  weeks  longer,  and  I  hope  to  see  him 
often.  Later  on  he  intends  to  make  a  tour  in  Gennany.  A  new  pianist 
of  the  name  of  Kuhn  is  here,  and  intends  to  give  a  concert.  But,  from 
what  I  hear,  he  is  no  good. 

There  is  even  less  classical  taste  here  then  in  Dresden.  Mozart, 
Beethoven,  Weber — these  can  only  be  played  in  the  king's  absence.  .  .  . 
But  it  seems  that  at  the  winter  concerts,  which  take  place  twice  a  month, 
one  does  hear  some  better  music. 

I  have  plenty  of  time  for  piano-playing  just  now,  as  the  Gymnasium 
does  not  open  till  the  15th  October,  so  I  am  working  pretty  hard  at  it. 
I  am  learning  to  understand  the  excellence  of  your  teaching  more  and 
more,  and  am  trying  to  follow  your  directions. 

I  have  not  yet  myself  tried  the  Stuttgart  pianos  of  Schiedmayer, 
but,  judging  from  hearing  them  played,  they  seem  to  have  a  powerful, 
beautiful,  and  singing  tone  ;  but  they  have  a  stiff  touch.  The  mechanism 
is  English,  and  the  prices  low — 500  gulden  (or  about  300  thalers). 

Lindpaintner's  new  opera  '  Lichtenstein'  has  met  with  no  success. 


*  Wilhelm  Kriiger  (1820-83),  composer  and  teacher  at  the  Stuttgart  Con- 
servatoire. 

t  Max  Bohrer  (1785-1852),  first  violoncellist  at  the  Stuttgart  Theatre. 

J  Julius  Benedict  (1804-85),  operatic  composer;  lived  in  Vienna,  Liverpool,  and 
London. 


STUTTGART.  19 

I  hoped  to  be  able  to  \Yrite  to  you  about  it,  but  it  has  not  been  given 
again.  As  there  is  no  more  musical  news  to  tell  which  would  be  of  any 
interest  to  you,  I  conclude  by  signing  myself, 

Yours  very  obediently, 

Hans  von  Bulow. 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Stuttgart,  Monday,  30th  Augtist  1847. 

.  .  .  .  I  am  now  quite  well  again.  I  have  not  yet  begun  to 
take  riding  lessons  again,  but  I  must  begin  soon,  as  it  is  maintained  here 
among  my  comrades  that,  in  consequence  of  an  accident,  I  have  given 
the  whole  thing  up,  and,  of  course,  I  must  now  give  a  brilliant 
contradiction  to  such  reports.  .  .  .  One  Sunday  lately  I  was  in  the 
Schloss  Church,  where  Griineisen  was  preaching  again  for  the  first  time. 
There  are  a  great  many  holidays  just  now,  and  this  week  there  is  again 
an  examination,  which  gives  me  some  free  days. 

In  the  autumn — in  the  middle  of  September — there  is  to  be,  as 
usual,  a  prize  recitation  for  every  class.  Seven,  in  my  class,  including 
myself,  are  going  in  for  it.  I  think  I  shall  recite  Schiller's  '  Ver- 
schleiertes  Bild  zu  Sais,'  and  hope  I  shall  win  the  prize ;  but,  if  I  should 
not,  I  shall  not  be  in  despair.  I  have  now  been  studying  Mendelssohn's 
Rondo,  which  I  like  immensely,  and  then  Liszt's  magnificent  arrange- 
ment of  the  Oberon  Overture ;  I  am  also  playing  Mayer's  Studies,  a 
Toccata,  a  new  number  of  Czemy's  '  Schule  der  Fingerfertigkeit,'  some 
of  Bach's  Fugues,  and  a  Scherzo  of  Mendelssohn's.  Now  I  am  taking 
up  again  Hummel's  Fantasia,  which  I  like  much;  it  is  difficult,  and 
only  here  and  there  a  little  unpleasantly  old-fashioned ;  I  am  also 
studying  the  new  edition  of  Liszt's  '  Sonnambula,'  and  Litolff's  charming 
*  Invitation  a  la  Polka.'  I  am  keeping  up  Beethoven's  D  minor 
Sonata,  and  think  of  studying  one  of  "Weber's,  which  are  really  beautiful. 
I  have  had  the  piano  tuned  lately,  but  as  it  has  had  some  new  strings  it 
is  again  awfully  out  of  tune. 

I  was  with  Molique  on  the  two  last  Sundays,  and  played  two 
Beethoven  Sonatas  with  him.  He  was  very  friendly,  and  will  lend  me 
with  pleasure  some  of  his  scores  of  ancient  operas  by  Piccini,  LuUy, 
PaesieUo,  which  will  interest  me  immensely.  I  played  Mendelssohn'^ 
Rondo  to  him  lately,  and  he  was  much  pleased. 

As  soon  as  I  have  drummed  the  Hummel  Fantasia  iuto  my  fingers, 


20  HANS  VON   BiJLOW. 

I  sliall  let  him  hear  it.     He  does  not  know  it  at  all.     Fraulein  Molique 
has  heen  ill,  and  is  not  going  to  give  any  more  lessons  henceforth. 

Things  are  going  on  somewhat  better  than  formerly  with  my  little 
pupil;*  certainly  I  still  get  very  cross,  but  as  far  as  possible  only  inside 
myself — one  must  postpone  its  effects,  I  think. 


Writing  to  his  mother  on  the  7th  September,  he  eays  : — 
Yesterday  Ritter   sent  me  a  letter,  and  a   parcel  containing   com- 
positions, some  Songs,  a  Sonata  dedicated  to  me,  and  half  of  a  string 
Quartet,     There  are  some  pretty  original  ideas  in  them,  but  the  form 
is  of  course  still  rather  awkward  and  abnormal. 

With  them  was  a  letter  from  Kapellmeister  Wagner  to  me  ! ! ! 
— "  Your  works,  dear  Herr  von  Biilow,  have  given  me  much  i>leasure  ;  I 
did  not  wish  to  give  them  back  to  your  friend  Ritter  without  accom- 
panying them  with  a  cheering  word  to  you.  I  do  not  add  a  criticism  to 
them,  for  you  will  have  enough  of  criticism  without  me  ;  and  I  feel  all 
the  less  disposed  to  pick  out  weaknesses  and  other  things  which  did  not 
please  me,  as  I  see  from  all  that  remains  that  you  will  soon  be 
completely  able  to  criticise  your  earlier  attempts  for  yourself. 
"Go  on  trying,  and  let  me  soon  see  something  more." 
I  think  that  it  is  superfluous  for  me  to  try  to  add  a  single  word  to 
this.  When  Ritter  came  to  the  Kapellmeister,  who  just  at  that  time 
had  visitors,  he  said  quietly  to  Ritter,  pointing  to  my  work,  "an 
undeniable  talent," 


TO  JOACHIM  RAFF. 

Stuttgart,  30th  December  1847. 

Most  Honoured  Friend, 

This  rather  bad  weather  prevents  me  from  coming  to 
you  myself,  to  thank  you  once  more  for  your  note  to  Lindpaintner.  He 
desires  his  kind  regards  to  you,  would  much  like  to  get  to  know  you 
better,  and  says  he  has  "  never  yet  heard  your  name  mentioned  in  general." 
So  it  is  now  settled  and  decided  that  I  shall  play  your  masterly 
'  Pratendenten '  Fantasia  on  Saturday,  the  1st  January,  at  the  close  of 
the  first  part. 

Besides  that,  there  will  also  be  M^hul's  '  Jagd '  Overture,  Mendels- 

*  Fraulein  Scheuteu. 


STUTTGART.  21 

sohn's  *  Meerestille';  Molique  will  play,  and  Jager,  Lehr,  and  Demoiselle 
Basse  will  sing.  So  I  am  delighted  that  your  splendid  Fantasia,  which 
I  will  take  the  utmost  pains  to  play  as  little  badly  as  ever  I  can,  will 
appear  in  pretty  good  company.  Tomorrow  I  shall  have  a  practice  at 
Schiedmayer's  ...  I  shall  omit  my  class  ...  I  can  choose  what  instru- 
ment I  like  best,  and  shall,  if  possible,  get  the  one  on  which  Madame 
Heinrich  played  at  her  matinee.  I  should  be  extremely  indebted  to  you 
if  you  could  come  there  at  any  hour  that  suited  you,  and  that  you  liked 
to  fix,  to  help  me  with  your  advice,  which  I  trust  absolutely. 

Yours  ever, 

*GUID0   V.    Bt)LOW. 

Apropos,  Lindpaintner  prefers  to  call  me  Hans  !  ! 


*  Billow's  second  Christian  name,  for  which  he  sometimes  showed  a  preference. 


LEIPZIG    UNIVERSITY 


CHAPTER  III. 

LEIPZIG  UNIVERSITY. 

SPRING    1848 — AUTDMN    1849. 

It  was  already  intimated  in  the  Introduction  that  the  position  young  Biilow 
held  towards  the  Frege  family  would  need  further  explanation.  Much  that 
there  is  of  what  is  rough,  passionate,  and  therefore  one-sided  in  the  following 
account  can  neither  be  omitted  from  the  picture  nor  left  to  stand  by  itself 
alone. 

A  greater  contrast  in  tradition,  nature,  education,  and  politics  than  existed 
between  Hans'  father  and  the  Frege  family,  it  would  be  impossible  to  imagine. 
The  well-to-do  patrician  house  in  Leipzig,  with  its  conservative  religious  and 
political  principles,  and  the  poet,  enthusiastic  for  *'  freedom  and  regeneration  " 
— who,  moreover,  had  not  succeeded  in  providing  an  assured  position  for 
himself  and  his — these  differing  elements  could  never  become  mutually 
sympathetic,  and  it  \vas  impossible  entirely  to  abnegate  the  opposition  to 
Hans'  father  in  intercourse  with  the  son,  which  the  latter  felt  bitterly,  and  fell 
into  prejudices  on  his  side  also. 

But,  quite  apart  from  this  point,  there  were  such  utter  contrasts  between 
Hans  and  the  Freges.  On  the  one  side,  the  two  married  couples  :  Kammer- 
rath  Frege  and  his  wife — he  the  head  of  a  great  banking  house,  a  man  of  high 
position  both  privately  and  publicly,  and  famous  for  his  love  of  botany  and 
his  magnificent  hothouses ;  she,  a  very  tender  mother  who,  having  lost 
several  children  in  childhood,  was  absorbed  with  the  health  of  those  who 
remained  to  her,  including  her  nephew  while  he  lived  under  her  care  ;  the 
younger  couple,  Woldemar  and  his  wife — he  twenty  years  older  than  his 
young  cousin  Hans,  Prolessor  of  Law,  religious,  conservative,  patrician  ;  she 
the  lively  and  talented  musician — both  much  taken  up  with  the  education  of 
their  son  Arnold,  with  the  claims  of  society,  and  of  a  large  circle  of  friends. 
On  the  other  side,  the  young  relation  entrusted  to  their  care,  endowed  with  a 
strongly  independent  spirit,  onlj-  kept  under  by  a  deep  sense  of  duty,  and  a 
tenderness  and  goodness  of  heart  which  made  him,  all  his  life  long,  feel  any 
dissonance  or  disagreement  absolutely  unendurable. 

And  then  the  years  1848-9  !  Could  any  period  have  been  more  trying  for 
men  of  such  opposite  feelings  and  temperament  to  have  to  come  daily  and 
hourly  into  contact  with  one  another,  dwelling  under  the  same  roof,  and 
meeting  at  the  same  table  ? 


26  HANS   VON   BULOW. 

Such  was  the  position  of  things  when  young  Biilow  was  an  inmate  oC  the 
Freges'  house.  Yet  it  was  no  lack  oi"  goodwill  or  kindly  feeling  on  their  part, 
but  solely  the  force  of  circumstances  of  that  excited  time,  and  the  radical 
differences  of  character  above  described,  that  finally  caused  so  much  pain  to 
both  sides. 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Leipzig,  2ith  June  1848. 

Dear  Mamma, 

Please  forgive  me  for  not  having  written  to  you  for  so 
long,  but  for  some  time  I  was  unwell,  and  then  I  had  a  good  deal  to  do  ; 
but  the  chief  reason  is  that  I  did  not  want  to  bother  you  with  complaints 
until  I  had  got  somewhat  accustomed  to  the  life  here.  For,  if  I  may 
speak  openly,  I  don't  feel  happy  here.  I  daresay  I  had  got  a  wrong  idea 
of  the  freedom  which,  as  a  student,  I  should  enjoy  ;  no  doubt  that  is  it. 
I  don't  mean  to  say  that  they  are  unfriendly  to  me,  or  treat  me  like  a 
child — it  is  not  that.  But  I  can't  do  anything  right,  they  find  so  much 
fault  with  me.  If  a  friend  comes  to  see  me,  he  does  sometimes  get  a  cup 
of  tea,  certainly,  but  he  is  not  allowed  to  smoke  in  my  room.  I  myself 
am  not  allowed  to  go  out  late  in  the  evening,  say  half-past  eight,  to  see 
anything  such  as  there  is  to  see  in  a  pretty  lively  town  like  this.  Please 
don't  think  that  I  am  not  trying  to  be  agreeable  to  them  all.  I  go  in  to 
Aunt  every  morning,  and  am  as  friendly  as  I  can  be,  but  I  don't  know 
what  to  talk  about ;  they  don't  have  any  sympathy  with  me.  At  table 
politics  are  talked,  but  in  a  way  which  makes  me  turn  dumb  and  give 
all  my  attention  to  my  plate,  although  I  have  very  little  appetite. 
Visits,  which  are  pretty  seldom  made,  don't  interest  me  in  the  very 
least ;  nor  do  I  care  much  more  for  the  singers  who  come  to  Livia  from 
time  to  time.  I  have  been  twice  to  the  theatre.  Except  for  that  I 
don't  go  out,  so  I  live  very  quietly  and  receive  very  few  callers,  because 
I  can't  do  as  I  like  in  my  own  room.  Late  in  the  evening,  that  is  to 
say,  after  ten  o'clock,  I  must  not  play  the  piano  any  more,  which  I 
should  often  much  like  to  do.  I  seldom  make  a  joke ;  I  rather 
acquiesce  in  that,  and  have  become  reserved  from  experience.  I  may 
never  say  how  I  like  this  or  that — nothing  to  do  with  anyone  in  the 
house,  for  I  might  be  venturing  on  an  opinion  difl'ereut  from  the 
authorities — that  is  the  hardest  of  all.  I  am  in  a  sort  of  middle 
position.  They  don't  say  '*  You  must  not  behave  like  that  here,"  which 
I  should  be  only  too  glad  if  they  would,  for  I  want  to  give  as  little 
offence  as  possible.  But  I  am  not  on  an  equality  with  anybody.  I  am 
supposed  to  consider  everyone  else  as  high  above  me,  which — forgive  me 


LEIPZIG   UNIVERSITY.  27 

for  such  unpardonable  arrogance — I  can't  always  do.  But  I  would  even 
do  that  if  they  would  leave  me  just  a  little  bit  of  independence.  This, 
alas,  only  consists  in  my  being  able — with  due  regard  to  the  hours — 
to  play  the  piano,  read  and  write  when  I  like,  in  my  own  room,  where  I 
am  fearfully  plagued  with  flies,  and  where,  even  in  the  great  heat,  I 
must  open  the  windows,  in  order  not  to  catch  cold  at  night.  But  do 
not  misunderstand  me,  dear  Mamma  ;  I  think  it  is  a  good  thing  to  go 
through  a  sort  of  schooling  like  that,  only  I  can't  understand  how 
Woldemar  can  call  this  year  the  happiest  of  my  life,  by  praising  up  my 
academical  freedom,  which  consists  in  being  able  to  miss  any  lectures  I 
like,  if  I  am  a  careless  fellow.  I  hope,  before  God,  it  is  not  to  be  my 
happiest !  I  will,  I  must,  try  to  make  myself  more  independent.  I  will 
not  do  anything  that  can  be  blamed,  but  I  must  emancipate  myself  in 
order  to  be  happier.  Otherwise  I  shall  grow  too  bitter ;  I  am  so 
already,  and  suffer  often  from  headache,  which  I  don't  let  them 
know. 

Of  the  household  I  get  along  best  with  Friedrich,  who  is  good 
towards  me,  and  little  Arnold.  My  six  songs,  which  I  dedicated  to 
Livia,  and  which  were  really  not  bad,  she  has  once  hummed  through  j 
she  found  some  pretty  ideas  in  them,  then  she  called  me  a  crack-brained 
fellow,  then  she  found  they  were  a  wonderful  mixture  of  Schumann, 
Chopin,  Dohler,  and  so  on.  She  apparently  does  not  want  to  spoil  me 
by  praise ;  but  she  might,  for  instance,  have  shown  them  once  to 
Kapellmeister  Rietz,  for  he  might  have  given  me  some  hints  about  them. 
Woldemar  did  not  like  the  songs  at  all,  except  one  bit,  which  reminded 
him  of  Weber — that  was  very  flattering  to  me  ;  but  Livia  could  have 
sung  the  songs  beautifully  if  she  would  have  done. 

Under  these  circumstances,  a  letter  from  Ritter  to  me  is  very 
refreshing — he  loves  me  truly  as  a  kindred  spirit.  Thode  is  also  a  really 
good  fellow.  He  gets  my  compositions  and  then  plays  them  to  me,  and 
I  am  delighted  when,  after  he  has  studied  them  for  some  time,  he  finds 
out  what  is  tolerably  good  in  them — he  shows  me,  by  this  interest, 
that  he  feels  a  friendship  for  me ;  I  know  how  to  discriminate  between 
this  and  flattery  or  depreciation,  I  occasionally  read  French  and  German 
books  with  him.     His  pronunciation  of  the  former  is  not  at  all  bad. 

Pray  forgive  me  that  I  have  destroyed,  by  these  foolish  outpourings, 
your  expectations  of  a  sensible  letter,  but  you  wished  me  to  be  quite 
open,  and  that  I  have  been.  But  please  don't  mention  a  word  of  it  to 
my  Aunt.  I  have  everything  I  require — am  even  much  better  fed  than 
is  necessary — so  there  is  every  reason  to  be  satisfied.  And  my  indiscre- 
tion was  probably  that,  owing  to  the  heat,  I  have  had  my  hair  cut  a  la 
mecontent.     For  the  rest  I  am  free  according  to  my  title  of  Student — 


28  HANS  VON   BULOW. 

a  good  step  above  the  Gymnasiast  (schoolboy),  and  I  have,  at  any  rate, 
a  certain  independence,  and  can  think  what  I  like, 

I  will  make  myself  as  freely  happy  as  I  can ;  if  that  is  not 
possible,  then  I  must  drag  along  as  well  as  I  can ;  Woldemar  found 
things  much  worse  in  his  student  days. 

Now  I  will  continue  in  a  more  reasonable  strain. 

I  shall  not  want  so  much  money  in  future ;  this  time  I  had  to  get 
several  necessary  books,  student's  portfolio,  inkstand,  etc.,  in  which 
Woldemar,  and  especially  Friedrich,  helped  me  much.  With  my  washing 
I  am  not  extravagant,  and  I  always  write  out  two  bills  in  an  orderly 
manner;  in  fact  I  keep  everything  in  order.  I  go  to  bed  at  ten  to  half- 
past,  and  get  up  at  half-past  five.  The  lectures  I  am  attending  are — 
Psychology  and  Logic  from  Weisse,  every  day  from  seven  to  eight,  (very 
clever  lectures,  sometimes  rather  obscure,  but  he  dictates  a  great  deal,  so 
that  one  can  think  it  over  afterwards  at  home).  And  it  is  very  nice 
that  he  gives  his  lecture  so  early,  because  then  one  is  obliged  to  get  up 
early.  Four  times  a  week  Wachsmuth  reads  Universal  History  from 
eight  to  nine,  which  is  rather  interesting  and  useful.  W.  is  no  very 
great  man,  but  he  knows  how  to  make  his  lectures  very  interesting, 
especially  by  quoting  the  sources  of  his  information.  Twice  a  week 
Haupt  reads,  from  ten  to  eleven,  Tacitus'  '  Germania,'  which  is  of  much 
interest  both  grammatically  and  historically.  He  is  also,  in  my  opinion, 
the  best  speaker,  as  he  always  speaks  in  an  equal  tone  and  never 
interrupts  himself. 

Hermann  I  hear  four  times,  from  eleven  to  twelve.  His  lectures  are 
intended  specially  for  philologists,  but  they  are  also  useful  to  me,  and  it 
is  interesting  to  see  again  this  celebrated  old  man,  who  comes  into  the 
room  every  time  rattling  his  spurs  with  such  an  energetic  step.  Fechner 
lectures  on  Wednesdays  and  Saturdays,  from  three  to  four,  on  the  Last 
Judgment.  His  audience  diminishes  every  time — first  there  were 
fifteen,  then  eight,  now  five.  He  is  a  profound  thinker,  and  I  enjoy 
listening  to  him  very  much.  He  tells  us  how  many  of  the  teachings  of 
Christianity  are  not  fulfilled,  and  the  extent  to  which  one  may  use  one's 
own  reason  in  judging  of  them.  (Original  sin,  freedom  of  will,  God's 
everlasting  decrees,  etc.)  First  of  all  he  occupied  himself  with  philoso- 
phical premonitions  about  Idealism  and  Materialism,  and  began  by  placing 
before  us  an  interposed  doctrine  of  these  two  extremes. 

Flathe's  lectures  on  Shakespeare's  Tragedies,  twice  a  week,  from 
four  to  five,  are  very  popular.  At  the  first  two  lectures  there 
were  120  students  (the  doors  were  left  open);  many  of  them  had 
to  stand,  as  they  could  not  get  into  the  room.  As  yet  he  has  been 
speaking  in   general   terms   about   ideas  of   art,  and   making  aesthetic 


LEIPZIG   UNIVERSITY.  29 

preambles ;  his  delivery  is  too  declamatory  to  be  a  standard  one,  but  he 
often  makes  very  witty,  striking  points.  Papa  repudiates  him,  but  I 
listen  to  him  nevertheless.  That  makes  twenty  lessons  in  the  week.  I 
wanted  to  go  twice  a  week  to  hear  Rathgeber's  lectures  on  the  Eudiments 
of  the  Italian  Language,  but  Papa  won't  have  it,  and  so  I  have  left  that. 

The  attending  of  the  lectures  fits  in  very  well  with  the  rest  of  my 
time.  I  always  do  my  piano  practice  from  nine  to  eleven  or  from  eight 
to  ten,  and  sometimes  go  then  to  Hartel,  and  I  also  have  the  afternoons 
to  myself  for  composing  and  other  work. 

I  am  very  much  pleased  with  the  piano  I  have  hired.  It  has  quite 
a  fair  tone,  and  keeps  in  very  good  tune  ;  I  also  often  play  on  Livia's — 
she  wishes  me  to  do  so  very  much,  as  her  piano  has  not  yet  been  half 
enough  played  upon,  and  is  very  unequal ;  for  otherwise,  as  you  may  well 
imagine,  I  would  not  do  so.  The  Chopin  Fantasia  did  not  please  Livia. 
I  play  Studies  and  Nocturnes  of  Chopin,  some  new  '  bad '  pieces  by 
Kullak,  Heller,  a  new  Fantasia  of  Thalberg,  Sonatas  of  Beethoven. 
Raff's  things  I  cannot  play  to  anybody  ;  firstly,  I  never  do  play  to  any- 
body, for  which  I  am  very  sorry,  as  I  might  again  inure  myself  to  my 
nervousness,  and,  secondly,  Livia  thinks  some  of  them  very  bad. 

I  have  not  seen  Ascher  for  five  weeks,  I  play  Moscheles'  '  Capric- 
cios' ;  firstly  because  they  are  such  good  practice,  secondly  because  they 
are  so  suitable  for  playing  to  anybody,  and  thirdly  because  through 
Ascher's  playing  I  have  learnt  somewhat  how  Moscheles  wants  them 
played,  and  because  they  are  more  attractive  to  me,  as  being  something 
new,  than  the  somewhat  trite  Studies. 

He  has  now  been  a  week  in  Dresden,  so  it  is  only  now  that  I  can 
go  to  him. 

Hauptmann  has  been  ill  the  whole  time  with  cold  and  fever,  and 
has  given  no  lessons  at  all,  but  hopes  to  be  able  to  begin  next  week.  I 
have  really  often  inquired  after  him,  but  Papa  seems  to  lay  the  fault  of 
my  not  having  yet  begun  my  lessons  with  him  onto  my  negligence.  I 
must  confess  that  I  should  be  very  glad  if  I  had  a  little  more  encourage- 
ment in  my  piano  playing.  It  is  not  that  I  am  lazy ;  but,  after  all,  one 
does  not  play  merely  for  one's  piano.  It  need  be  merely  a  hint  of 
encouragement,  but  another  kind  than  what  I  can  give  to  myself. 
Today  I  am  not  very  well  again,  with  some  giddiness  and  headache. 

The  theatre  aff'air  is  very  unpleasant  to  me,  because  it  is  to  you. 
But  I  did,  truly,  not  behave  in  the  very  least  improperly  in  the  pit. 
Besides,  I  was  always  with  the  Ritters,  and  they  must  surely  know 
something.  In  the  *  Prinz  Eugen '  I  hissed,  like  the  Ritters,  as  people 
applauded,  and  that  everybody  does  ;  that  is  no  *  stupid  prank.'  The 
people  who  sit  in  the  best  places  do  that;  of  course   not  the  ladies. 


30  HANS   VON   BULOW. 

Otherwise  I  am  not  conscious  of  having  done  anything  out  of  the  wa}', 
beyond  having  clapped  the  Valentine  very  loudly  !  For  the  rest,  as  you 
are  vexed  I  beg  to  be  forgiven. 

I  saw  here  a  most  wretched  performance  of  '  Robert,'  especially  by 
the  orchestra.  The  tempi  too  were  much  too  fast ;  except  Wagner,  I 
don't  know  any  conductor  who  does  not  commit  this  fault.  (Berlioz  relates 
that  Mendelssohn  did  it  too.)  ...  I  beg  you  earnestly,  dear  Mamma, 
to  write  me  word  fully  what  Wagner  lately  inserted  in  the  Anzeiger  ; 
Ritter  gave  me  only  very  short,  clever  hints  of  it.  He  sent  me  an 
article  for  the  musical  Signale,  which  was  very  well  written.  It  was 
a  refutation  of  the  thesis  that  '  the  present  time  is  unfavourable  to  art.' 
But  it  is  sure  not  to  be  accepted.  A  performance  of  Hamlet  enchanted 
me.  It  was  the  greatest  pleasure  I  have  had  yet,  except  the  Ninth 
Symphony,  at  a  concert  of  which  I  have  not  yet  told  you.  I  got  a 
relapse  of  my  headache  and  fever  at  it. 

The  concert  was  very  full.  824  tickets  were  sold,  and  632  thalers 
taken.  Many  people  had  paid  a  louis  d'or  for  one  or  two  tickets. 
Uncle  had  defrayed  the  expenses,  175  thalers,  out  of  his  own 
pocket.  It  was  very  good  of  him,  and  it  gave  universal  satis- 
faction. The  concert  opened  with  an  Overture  of  Gade's,  '  Im 
Hochland,'  which  was  really  very  charming,  fresh,  and  original  (with 
occasional  reminiscences  of  Mendelssohn),  and  was  very  well  played. 
An  Aria  from  Figaro  was  well  sung  by  Frl.  Schwarzbach.  David 
played  some  bad  variations  of  his  own  very  cleverly.  The  sextet  from 
Don  Juan  was  beautifully  played.  Livia  had  a  reception  on  making 
her  appearance.  Moscheles  played  a  very  beautiful  Rondo  of  Mendels- 
sohn's with  orchestra  very  delicately,  but  I  think  I  have  played  it  much 
more  in  the  spirit  of  the  composer.  This  commonplace  really  astounded 
me;  I  exclaimed,  '  Extraordinary  !  also  a  Jew  and  a  musician,  and  yet  so 
little  kinship  ! '  Livia  sang  two  songs  by  Rietz,  which  are  very  pretty 
and  made  a  perfect  furore.  Tliey  encored  the  second ;  she  did  not 
understand,  and  thought  the  applause  was  for  Rietz.  A  little  song  of 
Mendelssohn,  with  which  she  concluded,  was  not  at  all  suited  to  the 
concert,  and  made  but  little  effect.  If  she  had  only  followed  my  advice  ! 
— for  my  choice  was  in  every  way  better — but  at  last,  from  diffidence, 
I  said  nothing  more.  The  Ninth  Symphony  went  very  well — I  was 
absolutely  and  entirely  in  heaven.  Rietz  conducted  in  a  praiseworthy 
manner,  as  well  as  he  could.  The  ladies'  parts  were  much  better 
done  than  in  Dresden,  the  rest  not  so  good.  I  will  write  again  to  you 
very  soon. 

This  morning.  Midsummer  Day,  I  heard  Howard,  who  otherwise 
always  preached  at  the  same  time  as  Harless.     He  is  not  so  popular,  not 


LEIPZIG   UNIVERSITY.  31 

80  strikingly  powerful  as  Harless ;  but  he  has  profound  and  beautiful 
thoughts,  only  he  speaks  excessively  slowly.  .  .  . 

P.S. — I  am  feeling  somewhat  more  softened  again,  for  Livia  sang 
my  songs  again  yesterday,  and  said  many  kind  things  about  them. 

Writing  to  his  mother  on  the  4th  December  1848,  he  says  : — 

I  heard  Cherubini's  *  Requiem '  lately  in  the  Church  (at  B.'s 
funeral).  It  is  a  magnificent,  grand,  and  yet  clear,  sacred  composition, 
and  wonderfully  beautiful.  And  what  I  did  not  venture  at  first,  out  of 
diffidence,  to  assert — namely  that,  as  a  whole,  it  is  much  grander  than 
Mozart's  —  I  now  don't  hesitate  to  affirm,  seeing  that  Franz  and 
Hauptmann  say  the  same — two  such  diverse  musical  characters,  and  yet 
both  of  them  authorities. 

The  civil  disturbances  in  Germany  during  those  stormy  times  were  not 
without  their  influence  on  young  Biilow's  life  in  Leipzig.  And  then  came 
those  terrible  May-days  in  Dresden,  which  affected  him  powerfully,  both  on 
their  own  account  and  on  account  of  his  parents  and  friends  there.  The 
members  of  the  Fr6ge  family  naturally  felt  annoyed  at  what  they  considered 
Billow's  want  of  sympathy  in  their  anxieties  and  views,  and  even  expressed 
a  suspicion  that  he  was  following  these  events  with  joy,  and  that  he  was 
connected  with  the  democrats.  But,  whatever  inconsiderate  and  hasty  words 
may  have  been  spoken  on  b»th  sides,  nothing  more  keenly  touched  Billow's 
consciousness  of  his  own  loyalty  than  to  perceive  that  it  was  called  in  question. 
The  following  letter  betrays  in  every  word  the  painful  state  of  overwrought 
excitement  under  which  he  was  labourin"  : — 


TO  HIS  MOTHER  (Fragment). 

[Leipzig,  7ih  May  1849.] 

There  are  things  I  wanted  to  keep  silence  about,  but  it  is  impossible 
— I  must  come  out  with  it :  I  cannot  stand  being  in  this  house  any 
longer,  for  I  am  a  man,  and  not  a  machine.  Every  hour  here  is  torture 
to  me.  The  plainly-outspoken  contempt,  and  even  suspicion,  latterly, 
is  perfectly  unendurable.  Day  and  night  there  is  the  greatest  excite- 
ment here,  and  noise  everywhere ;  and  yesterday  it  was  carried  to  such 
an  excess  that  there  were  eight  killed  and  several  wounded.  Now  that 
they  know  my  opinions  they  dare  to  implicate  me  in  it  all.  I  must 
know  everything.  If  I  can't  appear  sufficiently  gloomy  and  serious,  then 
they  mistrust  me  in  the  most  marked  manner,  and  they  beg  Uncle  to  take 
care  what  he  says  before  me,  because  I  should  pass  it  on  to  the  democrats  1 
Could  anything  be  worse  ?  .  .  .  I  implore  you,  write  to  Aunt,  or,  better 
still,  send  me  somewhere  else  ;  dry  bread  would  be  preferable.     I  mean 


32  HANS   VON   BULOW. 

it !  I  don't  know  whether,  in  this  fearful  state  of  things,  this  letter  will 
ever  reach  you,  but  I  write  to  you  all  the  same;  perhaps  also  there 
might  be  a  possibility  of  things  soon  taking  a  turn,  or  coming  to  an  end 
of  some  sort.  .  .  .  Studying  and  practising  are  just  now  absolutely 
impossible  to  me.  I  wish  I  were  not  a  man,  but  a  poor,  unreasoning 
brute,  that  I  might  not  feel  tlie  sensations  I  do.  How  happy  among  our 
comrades  is  he  who  was  yesterday  struck  down  by  a  cannon-ball  in 
Dresden  !  ...  If  only  you  in  Dresden  are  not  suffering  !  I  am  so 
anxious  about  you,  although  you  are  pretty  far  away  from  the  scene 
of  action.  If  only  I  could  come  to  you,  to  hear  a  iew  friendly,  tolerant 
words  !     If  only  Wagner  does  not  get  shot ! 

Beautiful  Dresden  !  To  think  that  so  lately  I  was  glorying  in  the 
many  art-works  in  her  picture-galleries,  and  that  only  a  few  weeks  ago 
I  was  hearing  the  grandest  of  all  music  in  her  opera-house  !  And  now 
the  one  is  given  up  to  the  flames,  and  the  other  is  the  scene  of  the  most 
horrible  murder !  Heaven  grant  that  the  seed  sown  in  blood  may 
blossom  into  something  beautiful,  everlasting,  and  divine.  .  .  . 

To  this  letter,  written  under  the  strain  of  unnatural  excitement,  he  added 
another  very  shortly  afterwards,  in  a  calmer  frame  of  mind,  in  which  it 
appeared  that  the  proclamation  of  martial  law  having  quieted  down  the 
overwrought  feelings  on  both  sides,  he  would  be  glad  to  remain  on  until 
Michaelmas  under  his  Uncle's  roof  : — 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Weimar,  ^nd  June  1849. 

Dear  Mamma, 

Thank  you  for  your  last  letter  and  the  two  letters  of 
introduction.  Please  give  my  thanks  to  the  lady  who  gave  them  for  me, 
as  they  have  been  a  pleasure  to  me.  I  am  writing  to  you  in  a  great 
hurry,  for  reasons  which  I  will  explain  to  you  presently.  I  shall  send 
you,  later  on,  a  sort  of  diary  of  my  doings  here,  by  which  you  will  be 
able  to  see  more  particularly  how  very  useful  this  stay  is  to  me  in  many 
ways,  and  how  I  am  right  in  begging  you  to  give  me  the  means  to 
prolong  it  still  a  little  more.  Liszt  answered  very  kindly  last  Monday 
that  he  would  do  everything  he  could  to  make  my  stay  here  interesting 
to  me.  I  forthwith  went  on  Monday  at  mid-day  to  Halle,  and  stayed 
there  till  Tuesday. 

After  some  futile  attempts,  I  met  Liszt  at  one  o'clock  (Wednesday). 
He  had  to  go  to  the  Grand-Ducal  dinner,  but  we  had  an  hour's  talk 
together   on   various  subjects — Raff,  Wagner,  who,  Liszt  hopes,  is  in 


LEIPZIG  UNIVERSITY.  33 

Paris.  In  the  afternoon  he  appointed  me  to  meet  him  at  half-past  four 
at  the  Altenburg,  the  abode  of  the  Princess  Wittgenstein,  where  Liszt 
is  also  accustomed  to  spend  the  whole  day.  There  I  met  a  pupil  of  his 
(sixteen  years  old),  young  Winterberger,*  a  very  talented  fellow.  Liszt 
was  with  us  both  till  nine  o'clock.  I  played  the  Schumann  song  to  him, 
and  he  was  pleased  with  my  manner  of  playing,  although  I  had  not  got 
his  conception  of  the  piece.  It  was  also  very  interesting  to  me  to  see 
how  he  let  his  pupil  play  Beethoven's  E  flat  Concerto ;  and  his  splendid 
hints  with  regard  to  the  conception  of  it,  even  in  the  apparently  most 
trifling  matters,  are  of  great  use  to  me.  He  played  some  things  for  four 
hands  with  me,  then  some  new  compositions,  amongst  others  the 
paraphrase  of  Wolfram's  song ;  finally,  he  took  a  long  walk  with  us  in 
the  castle  garden.  It  would  take  too  long  to  tell  you  all  the  details 
here.  On  the  same  afternoon  he  received  also  a  most  sensible,  excellent 
letter  of  apology  from  Raff.  On  Thursday  he  dined  with  me  at  the 
Russischer  Hof,  where  I  am  stopping.  He  came  with  the  most  notable 
artists  and  singers,  who  all  adore  him,  and  whom  he  treats  with 
unspeakable  kindness.  He  is  a  quite  perfect  man.  Today  I  was  at 
Stor's,t  the  leading  violinist,  who  has  also  done  something  as  a  composer 
— there  was  no  end  to  his  praise.  Liszt's  playing,  and  his  whole 
personality,  have  completely  enchanted  and  inspired  me  ;  all  the  brilliant 
gifts  of  former  days  he  still  possesses  in  the  fullest  measure,  but  a  more 
manly  repose,  an  all-round  solidity,  complete  his  truly  exalted  character. 

Early  yesterday  I  was  with  him  at  the  rehearsal  of  '  Fidelio.'  I 
was  perfectly  carried  away  by  his  conducting — admirable,  astounding  ! 
In  the  evening  he  played  Trios  at  the  Altenburg.  We  were  again 
with  him  from  seven  to  eleven.  Tomorrow  he  is  going  to  have  my 
Quartet  played.  He  has  placed  his  room,  piano,  and  musical  library  at 
my  disposal  every  morning ;  naturally  I  have  frequently  availed  myself 
of  the  permission. 

In  short,  I  myself  know  best  of  what  use  it  is  to  me  to  see,  to  talk 
with,  and  to  hear  Liszt.  I — who  before  the  Whitsuntide  days  was 
bitterness  personified,  and  thought  of  nothing  but  revolutionary  terror- 
ism in  spe — cannot  now  even  read  a  paper,  think  no  longer  of  politics, 
but  am  able  again  to  enjoy  life ;  and  the  intercourse  with  some  first- 
rate  and  real  artists,  the  chief  representatives  of  their  art — an  inter- 
course which  I  have  had  to  do  without  for  so  long — does  me 
indescribable  good. 


*  Alexander  Winterberger  (1834),   organist  and    pianist,  a  pupil  first  of  the 
Leipzig  Conservatoire,  and  then  of  Liszt. 

t  Karl  Stor  (1814-89),  later  on  conductor  at  Weimar. 

C 


34  HANS   VON   BULOW. 

So  I  beg  you  most  earnestly  to  let  me  stay  on  till  Wednesday,  and 
for  this  to  send  me  as  soon  as  possible  three  reichsthaler  more — I  can 
spend  it  out  of  my  own  money-box — for  I  cannot  use  the  money  in  a 
better  way  than  this.  I  have  pretty  confident  hopes  that  you  will  fulfil 
this  wish,  because  I  shall  wait  for  your  answer,  and  thus  I  must  overstep 
the  proposed  time  of  my  stay  here.  I  am  really  not  wasting  my  money, 
as  you  will  perhaps  see  from  the  accompanying  paper  of  accounts. 

Yesterday  I  dined  at  Herr  v.  Schwendler's,*  today  I  go  to  Frau 
V.  Pogwischjt  in  the  evening  is  '  Fidelio,'  and  after  the  opera  Liszt  will 
come  to  the  hotel.  As  I  heard  today  from  Liszt's  own  particular 
famulus  (Stor,  the  first  violinist),  I  may  also  be  of  some  little  use  to 
him,  but  of  this  more  anon. 

*'  I  also  brought  some  of  my  songs  with  me,  and  it  is  quite  easy  for 
me  to  get  them  sung  by  artists  here,  as,  owing  to  Liszt's  extreme  kind- 
ness to  me,  I  have  already  got  quite  a  good  position  among  them. 

In  a  long  letter  to  his  mother  from  Leipzig  on  the  21st  June  1849,  he  writes 
as  follows : — 

Thank  you  again  a  thousand  times  for  having  allowed  me  to  stay  a 
few  days  longer  in  Weimar ;  I  think  the  visit  has  done  me  good  both 
musically  and  in  other  respects. 

Liszt  sent  me  a  short  time  ago,  through  Kistner,  his  newest  work, 
three  great  Studies;  I  wrote  to  him  lately,  after  I  had  executed  his 
commissions,  and  I  hope  I  may  perhaps  get  an  answer  from  him  soon, 
giving  me  R.  W.'s  address. 

I  believe  I  have  already  told  you  that  he  had  my  Quartet  played 
twice  at  his  house.  The  first  time  it  was  done  he  was  prevented  from 
hearing  it,  by  a  sudden,  long  call  from  the  theatre  Litendant ;  I  was, 
however,  very  glad  of  this,  as  it  was  played  in  an  excruciating  manner, 
whereas  the  second  time  it  went  quite  nicely,  including  the  Scherzo 
(some  of  the  musicians  having  looked  over  their  parts  at  home).  Liszt 
said  several  times,  *  Very  nice,'  '  Very  pretty,'  but  also  '  Very  difficult.'  I 
begged  him  to  allow  me  to  send  him  later  on  my  Overture,  at  which  I 
am  now  working  steadily,  a  permission  which  he  very  kindly  granted. 
Liszt  gave  us  an  immense  pleasure  that  same  day  (Tuesday)  by  his  per- 
formance of  the  'Tannhauser'  Overture,  which  he  has  paraphrased  in  a 
most  wonderful  manner  and  with  the  greatest  assiduity  (he  made  three 

*  Herr  v.  Schwendler,  a  State  oCQcial  of  high  standing  in  the  Weimar  and 
Coburg  service. 

t  Henriette  von  Pogwisch,  one  of  tlie  ladies  of  honour  to  the  Grand  Duchess 
Luise  of  Saxe- Weimar,  and  mother  of  Ottilie  von  Goethe. 


LEIPZIG   UNIVERSITY.  35 

different  arrangemeats  of  it) ;  he  has  managed  to  give  the  effects  in  such 
a  wonderful  manner  on  the  piano,  as  no  other  pianist,  I  am  sure,  will 
ever  be  able  to  do.  In  all  probability  he  will  publish  this  arrangement, 
as  well  as  the  transcription  of  Wolfram's  song.  The  latter  is  not  particu- 
larly difficult ;  and  the  former  does  not  look  so  very  awful  on  paper,  yet 
the  playing  of  it  was  such  a  strain  upon  him  that  he  was  obliged 
to  stop  for  a  moment  once  near  the  end,  and  he  very  seldom  plays  it 
because  it  exhausts  him  too  much,  so  that  he  said  to  me  afterwards, 
'  You  can  write  down  today  in  your  diary  that  I  have  played  the 
"Tannhauser"  Overture  to  you.' 

I  had  read  the  Journal  des  dehats  of  the  16th  (?)  May  a  month 
ago,  but  thank  you  for  telling  me  about  it.  I  strongly  advise  you  to  get 
Liszt's  article  in  the  feuilleton,  not  necessarily  to  get  a  '  sympathy '  for 
*  Tannhauser,'  but  simply  because  the  article  is  written  in  a  perfectly 
masterly,  superb  manner.  Liszt  reproduces  the  contents  of  the  opera 
almost  in  Wagner's  own  words,  in  a  way  that  one  would  have  hardly 
thought  it  possible  to  render  German  poetry  into  French,  and  I  hope  it 
will  have  done  Wagner  much  good,  although,  as  Liszt  himself  avows,  it  is 
impossible  to  give  '  Tannhauser '  with  any  success  on  a  French  stage.  .  .  . 

After  frequently  hearing  Liszt,  I  have  now  made  a  special  study  of 
what  was  particularly  defective  in  my  piano-playing,  namely,  a  certain 
amateurish  uncertainty,  a  certain  angular  want  of  freedom  in  conception, 
of  which  I  must  completely  cure  myself ;  in  modern  pieces  especially  I 
must  cultivate  more  ahandon,  and,  when  I  have  conquered  the  technical 
difficulties  of  a  piece,  I  must  let  myself  go  more,  according  to  how  I  feel 
at  the  moment ;  and,  if  one  is  not  devoid  of  talent,  of  course  anything 
absurd  or  unsuitable  does  not  come  into  one's  mind.  Please  give  me 
your  opinion  fully  on  this  point,  and  tell  me  what  struck  you  formerly 
as  faulty  or  ugly  in  my  playing,  for  I  want  to  perfect  myself  as  far  as 
ever  I  can ;  and  with  the  idea  that  I  shall  sometime  give  lessons  I  have 
always  tried  to  become  more  confident,  and  it  is  not  at  aU  improbable 
that  it  may  yet  come  to  that. 

According  to  what  Liszt  tells  me,  there  is  really  a  foundation  for 
the  report  that  he  has  begun  some  big  works,  and  that  several  piano 
Concertos  with  orchestral  accompaniment  are  lying  completed  in  his  desk, 
with  which  he  means  to  *  pay  oif  some  of  his  debts,'  and  an  Italian  opera, 
'  Sardanapalus '  (after  Byron's)  is  far  on  towards  completion.  These  are 
secrets  at  present,  which  he  does  not  want  all  the  world  to  know. 

He  usually  worked  at  the  Altenburg  in  the  mornings,  so  that  I 
seldom  saw  him  at  that  time,  but  in  the  afternoons  and  evenings  I  was 
almost  always  with  him.  His  talk  was  always  intensely  interesting,  and 
he  hardly  ever  said  an  insignificant  thing.    He  spoke  French  by  preference, 


36  HANS  VON   BULOW. 

and  even  when  he  talked  in  German  he  constantly  interpolated  not 
merely  words,  but  whole  phrases  in  French.  .  .  . 

Writing  from  Leipzig  again  on  the  2nd  August  1849,  he  says  to  his 
mother : — 

Quite  by  chance  I  met  Litolff.  I  was  feeling  very  hungry  one  day 
between  two  of  my  lectures,  and  went  into  a  baker's  in  Peters-strasse. 
Suddenly,  as  I  was  turning  a  corner,  I  saw  a  well-known  figure  standing 
before  a  picture-shop ;  I  fixed  my  eyes  on  him,  hesitated  a  moment,  and 
then  was  so  struck  with  the  resemblance  that  I  went  up  to  him;  it  was 
really  Litolff,  and  he  knew  mo  directly  too.  Litolflf  looked  so  very  much 
better  that  this  explained  my  doubts  as  to  his  identity ;  except  for  the 
unavoidable  nervous  twitching  of  his  face,  which  affects  strangers  so  un- 
pleasantly, he  is  much  quieter,  and  has  become  much  stronger  and 
healthier ;  but  unfortunately,  as  I  found  from  his  conversation,  as  he  has 
got  stronger  bodily  he  has  grown  weaker  as  regards  the  productiveness  of 
his  brain.  In  order  to  excite  his  brain  sufficiently  seems,  or  seemed,  to 
require  such  an  excited  life,  such  a  deranged  health  :  now  he  has  already 
settled  down  into  the  Philistine  repose  of  a  good  humdrum  citizen ;  may 
the  Fates  preserve  him  from  sinking  into  this  and  nothing  more  ! 

A  German  genius — I  cannot '  include  Mozart  in  the  category  of 
German  geniuses — can  perfectly  well  fulfil  his  calling  apart  from  the 
outer  world,  in  the  quiet  peace  of  his  own  family,  and  among  the  homely 
concerns  of  everyday  life — indeed  he  is  even  at  his  best  thus ;  but  a  non- 
German,  a  Frenchman,  or  a  Pole,  or  indeed  any  foreigner  of  talent  or 
genius,  such  as  Litolfi",  cannot  do  this.  He  requires  the  perpetual  alter- 
nation of  joy  and  grief,  he  requires  'great  passions,' — in  a  word,  the 
great  outside  world.  Such  a  man  as  Litolflf  will  occasionally  be  inert, 
perhaps  sink  into  the  mud  for  a  moment,  but  will  then  arise  and  create 
anew,  with  superhuman,  demoniacal  power  and  perseverance,  something 
very  great,  although  to  a  certain  extent  imperfect,  if  looked  into  very 
closely.  Such  a  life  as  this  is,  in  my  opinion,  the  most  natural  for 
Litolflf. 


BERLIN    UNIVERSITY 


CHAPTER  IV.  *• 

BERLIN    UNIVERSITY. 

AUTUMN  1849— SUMMER  1850. 

In  the  autumn  of  1849  the  divorce  of  Hans'  parents  took  place.  In  the  same 
year  Eduard  married  Louise  von  Billow,  daughter  of  Count  von  Biilow- 
Dennewitz,  the  Prussian  Field- Marshal,  who  attained  celebrity  in  the  war  for 
freedom.  She  was  a  charming  creature,  highly  cultivated  and  witty,  enthusi- 
astic, and  full  of  goodness  and  kindness  of  heart,  which  was  always  shown  in 
an  equal  measure  towards  Eduard's  two  children  by  his  first  marriage. 

The  pair  went  to  Switzerland,  and  bought  the  beautiful  castle  of  Otlis- 
hausen  in  Canton  Thurgau,  intending  to  make  that  their  permanent  home. 

In  the  late  autumn  Franziska  went  to  Berlin  with  Hans  and  Isa,  for  the 
sake  of  the  former,  who  was  there  to  continue  his  University  studies. 
Eduard's  cousins,  Ernst  and  Paul  von  Billow,  the  former  of  whom  was  in  the 
Prussian  State  service,  and  the  latter  in  the  army,  together  with  a  few 
acquaintances  of  Franziska's  among  the  literary  people  of  the  Berlin  of  those 
days,  formed  the  pleasant  circle  into  which  the  new-comers  stepped.  Frau- 
lein  Henriette  Solmar,  a  well-known  personality  in  the  Varnhagen  circle, 
wrote  to  Eduard  in  the  most  friendly  terms  about  Hans,  and  Varnhagen  him- 
self took  a  deep  interest  in  the  young  man,  an  interest  which  he  maintained 
in  later  years. 

It  was  in  this  winter  (1849)  that  Hans'  journalistic-literary  work  began.  In 
the  autumn  he  obtained  the  post  of  musical  reporter  to  the  Abendpost,  a 
democratic  paper  of  the  day.*  He  was  also  occasional  correspondent  to  other 
papers,  not  in  Berlin.  He  was  studying  music  at  this  time  without  any  prac- 
tical or  theoretical  help,  but  with  the  greatest  zeal. 

In  the  spring  of  1850  Franziska  and  her  daughter  Isa  left  Berlin  and 
returned  to  Dresden,  Hans  going  with  them  for  the  Easter  holidays,  after 
which  he  returned  to  Berlin  to  continue  his  studies,  accompanied  this  time 
only  by  his  faithful  companion  of  many  years — his  dog  Wach. 

From  Berlin,  writing  to  his  mother  on  the  6th  July  1850,  he  says  : — 

I  am  giving  lessons  in  harmony  to  another  student — I  don't  have 

*  Some  of  these  writings,  partly  critical,  partly  polemical,  will  appear  in  a  separ- 
ate volume. 


40  HANS  VON   BULOW. 

anything  to  do  with  swaggerers  and  ranters  and  scandal-mongers — and 
he  gives  me  lessons  in  English  in  return ;  I  am  reading  the  '  Vicar  of 
Wakefield,'  which  I  can  understand  quite  well  without  any  help  except 
from  the  dictionary. 

And  on  the  4th  August  he  writes  as  follows  (also  to  his  mother)  : — 

For  Griepenkerl's  *  poor  tragedy  'Robespierre'  Litolff  has  written 
an  Overture,  which  has  met  with  the  most  universal,  undivided  praise. 
I  ordered  it  for  myself,  and,  if  not  exactly  a  classical  Beethoven  Overture 
a  la  Egmont,  it  is  nevertheless  a  very  talented  piece  of  music,  with 
undeniable  flashes  of  genius,  and,  so  far  as  I  can  gather  from  the 
instrumentation,  full  of  interesting  effects ;  and  moreover  there  is  a 
unity  about  the  whole,  which  is  all  the  more  surprising  to  me  as  he  is 
otherwise  rather  split  up  and  piece-meal  in  his  writing.  The  principal 
subjects  are  the  very  ones  which  he  had  formerly  fixed  upon  for 
Catherine  Howard  in  the  Overture.  When  I  went  to  see  Geyer  lately 
he  gave  me  a  new  Trio  by  Litolff  to  take  home  with  me  (the  second 
Trio,  just  out),  and  I  confess  I  have  truly  rejoiced  over  Litolff's  progress 
and  the  quickness  of  his  power  of  production.  There  is  a  wealth  of 
genius  and  ideas  in  it,  and  some  things  are  of  an  excellence  which  is 
rare  nowadays.  It  is  rhythmically  and  melodically  original  without 
oddity ;  almost  everything  sounds  well ;  there  is  freshness  and  life 
throughout ;  a  specially  beautiful  Andante,  and  a  Finale  overflowing 
with  humour.  Geyer  had  begged  me  to  review  it  for  him,  which  I  have 
done,  and,  though  I  praised  it  most  tremendously  (and  the  Leipzig 
Signale  wrote  in  even  far  more  favourable  terms  of  it),  that  dry  old 
fellow  did  not  agree  with  what  was  said,  because  Litolff  had  violated 
what  he  considers  the  inflexible,  sacred,  unimpeachable  old  Trio-form. 
But  Litolff  has  kept  as  strictly  as  possible  to  the  old  forms,  only  not 
pedantically ;  the  last  movement  especially  he  has  carried  out  further, 
and  in  a  very  happy  manner.  For  it  is  a  very  bad  habit,  and  in  the 
highest  sense  a  want  of  form,  that  composers  always  lay  out  their  Finale 
on  as  large  a  scale  as  the  first  movement,  and  if  possible  spin  it  out  even 
longer.  The  hearer  cannot  stand  it,  as  this  repetition  grows  wearisome  j 
and  on  the  other  hand  there  seems  very  little  justification  in  a  fourth 
movement  at  all,  if  the  form  of  it  is  not  new,  but  just  a  reproduction  of 
the  introduction,  and  only  individual  owing  to  its  being  of  a  lighter 
character,  in  place  of  the  more  heavy  earnestness.  The  Rondo-form,  in 
such  a  manner,  is  old-fashioned  and  insupportable.     L.  has  taken  the 

*  Wolfgang  Robert  Griepenkerl  (1810-68),  Professor  of  the  History  of  Art  at 
tlie  '  Carolinum  '  iu  Brunswick  ;  in  his  writings  a  partisan  of  musical  progress. 


BERLIN   UNIVEKSITY.  41 

right  road  ;  he  has  '  hit  the  nail  on  the  head,'  as  papa  would  say, 
whether  by  instinct  or  in  conscious  imitation  of  the  Finale  of  many  a 
Beethoven  Symphony.  In  the  first  movement  and  the  Andante  the 
composer  must  give  himself  over  to  the  purest  subjectivity;  the  last 
movement,  and  perhaps  also  the  Scherzo,  must  be  treated  as  objective,  so 
that  the  hearer  may  be  satisfied  in  recognising  the  necessity  for  a 
conclusion ;  in  order  that  the  objectivity  may  not  be  insipid — for 
musicians  and  music-lovers  do  not  require  an  insipid  objectivity,  like 
Hofrath  Carus,  &  Co. — the  composer  has  carte  blanche  to  introduce  here 
a  piquant,  a  capriccioso  element.  And  this  is  what  Litol£f  has  done.  And 
then  a  Flodoard  Geyer  puffs  himself  up  and  cries,  '  The  critic  must  be 
the  guardian  of  the  sacredness  of  form,'  etc.  All  the  same,  I  hope  my 
criticism  will  be  printed  in  the  musical  paper  here,  and,  if  it  is,  I  shall 
write  to  LitolfF  so  as  to  bring  myself  into  connection  with  him  again  if 
possible,  I  must  say  I  long  to  see  the  dear  man  again,  and  if  it  were 
not  for  Weimar  I  should  like  to  go  to  Brunswick. 

Forgive  my  tremendous  garrulity ;  '  Vohjet  m^a  emporte  malgre 
moi.' 

I  have  been  living  rather  a  dull  life  here  lately,  but  now  I  mean  to 
go  in  for  a  little  amusement,  especially  by  going  to  the  theatre.  When 
the  opera  reopens  after  the  holidays  they  are  going  to  give  '  Cosi 
fan  tutte,'  which  I  am  very  anxious  to  see.  And  then  Eachel  is  here, 
and  was  lately  playing  Camilla  in  '  Horace,'  and  also  playing  in  *  Andro- 
mache.' Everybody  is  in  raptures,  or  pretends  to  be,  as  that  is  the  correct 
thing.  There  is  no  doubt  that  she  is  something  very  extraordinary  and 
specially  gifted,  and,  according  to  her  portrait,  she  looks  very  interesting. 
I  intend  to  see  her  in  her  next  part,  Phaedra,  which  is  said  to  be  one  of 
her  best.  I  don't  think  one  ought  to  put  off  a  thing  like  that,  for  it  is 
not  probable  that  she  will  revisit  Germany  very  soon,  and  who  knows 
when  I  may  get  to  Paris,  apart  from  all  other  eventualities  1 

I  lately  made  a  call  on  the  Court  preacher  Strauss,  to  whom  Herr 
V.  Gall  had  as  good  as  introduced  me  (though  not  in  person),  and  about  a 
week  afterwards  I  was  invited  to  an  evening  party  there.  The  family, 
in  addition  to  his  kind  and  courteous  wife,  consists  of  two  sons,  who  are 
also  clergymen,  and  the  younger  of  whom  is  musical  (church  music). 
The  company  was  not  particularly  interesting  or  attractive,  but  there 
were  a  good  many  young  people  there,  and,  apart  from  a  very  nice 
supper  in  pretty  rooms,  I  was  most  kindly  treated,  and,  after  I  had 
played,  I  received  tremendous  attention.  For  I  really  had  played  pretty 
well  and  with  great  ease,  as  I  had  had  a  little  wine  at  supper,  and  then 
one  plays  one's  best  and  surest.  I  had  played  the  Prophete  Fantaisie 
(No.  1),  and  had  petrified  everybody.     A  clergyman — I  don't  know  who 


42  HANS   VON   BULOW. 

it  was — compared  me  with  the  '  Edel  von  Hornau,'  with  this  difference, 
that  he  could  only  boast  of  one  thing,  whereas  I  knew  much  more  and 
was  more  daring.  Then  some  of  the  ladies  begged  for  something  '  soft,' 
and  I  played  them,  con  molto  sentimento,  a  transcription  of  KuUak's  on 
an  air  from  '  Norma,'  which  is  very  pretty  and  elfectivoly  arranged,  and 
which  gained  me  the  reputation  of  *  many-sidedness.'  ... 

Biilow  persuaded  his  mother  to  accompany  him  to  the  Herder  Festival 
at  Weimar  at  the  latter  end  of  August.  After  a  short  stay  there,  which  she 
appears  thoroughly  to  have  enjoyed,  Franziska  wrote  to  her  daugliter  : — 
'  After  the  Festival  came  Liszt ;  he  pressed  my  hand,  and  thanked  me 
that  we  had  both  come,  adding,  as  he  kissed  Hans  in  farewell,  "  Je  suis  tres 
attache  a  ce  gargon."  ' 


SWITZERLAND 


CHAPTEE  V. 

SWITZERLAND. 

AUTUMN  1850 SUMMER  1851. 

The  turning-point  in  Hans  von  Billow's  career  was  now  at  hand.  On  the 
10th  September  (1850)  he  arrived  at  Otlishausen  on  a  visit  to  his  father,  and 
to  see  his  sister  Isa,  who  was  also  there  on  a  short  visit. 

In  spite  of  the  inward  agitation  through  which  he  was  passing,  he  appears 
to  have  shown  a  calm  exterior,  and  to  have  evinced  a  self-jcommand  which,  on 
all  the  really  great  occasions  of  his  life,  never  failed  him. 

His  step-mother,  speaking  of  those  days,  says  :  "  Hans  appeared  in  good 
spirits,  and  was  constantly  talking ;  we  often  went  walks  in  the  beautiful 
neighbourhood.  .  .  .  But  the  pleasant  time  in  Otlishausen  did  not  last  long. 
One  morning  Hans  had  vanished.  He  was  absent  from  breakfast,  dinner,  and 
supper.  All  inquiries  were  unsuccessful.  Biilow  soon  said,  '  Hans  is  gone  to 
Wagner  at  Zurich.'  I  could  not  but  think  the  same  thing.  Biilow  took  the  post 
at  the  next  station,  Rorschach,  for  the  railway  in  that  part  was  not  yet 
finished,  and  went  to  Zurich-  The  next  day  he  came  back,  very  much  upset 
and  excited.  Hans  had  fallen  at  his  father's  feet,  and  implored  him  to  let  him 
become  a  musician.  His  father  had  then  yielded,  on  condition  that  his 
mother  agreed  to  it.  I  did  my  best  to  calm  Biilow,  and  my  endeavours  were 
not  without  result.  By  degrees  he  became  more  composed  about  his  son's 
bold  and  hasty  resolve — but  Hans  would  have  to  come  to  an  understanding 
with  his  mother  himself." 

Before  taking  the  decisive  step  Hans  had  made  the  attempt  with  his 
mother  in  the  following  letter  : — 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Otlishausen,  16th  September  1850. 

.  .  .  Now  as  to  my  affairs.  And,  please,  hear  me  patiently  to  the 
end.  I  might  have  gone  to  work  a  roundabout  way,  and  prepared  you 
little  by  little,  but  I  prefer  to  go  direct  to  the  point. 


46  HANS   VON   BtlLOW. 

Kapellmeister  Wagner  proposed  to  me  some  days  ago  that  I  should 
make  practical  studies  under  his  direction  in  Zurich  next  winter,  and 
conduct  the  opera  there  in  turns  with  Ritter,  for  which  I  should  then 
draw  half  of  the  salary.  In  the  larger  concerts,  in  which  "Wagner  would 
himself  conduct  the  Beethoven  Symphonies,  I  might  come  forward  as  a 
pianist,  and  thus  become  known,  and  be  enabled,  by  giving  lessons,  to 
keep  myself.  This  is  at  least  a  proposal  worth  consideration ;  an 
opportunity  which,  for  anyone  who  wants  to  embrace  a  musical  career, 
would  be  joyfully  seized  upon  by  any  young  artist ;  an  opportunity 
which  will  not  soon  offer  again,  and  certainly  not  in  a  better  or  more 
attractive  guise.  It  is  a  great  question  whether  Wagner  will  still  be  in 
Zurich  during  the  winter  of  1851-2. 

Now,  I  implore  you  most  earnestly,  listen  to  the  result  of  my 
reflections,  made  after  the  first  excitement  was  overcome,  and  thought 
out  in  wakeful  nights.  The  question  of  my  future  career  presses  for 
a  speedy  and  definite  solution.  I  have  passed  my  twentieth  year,  and 
have  had  no  clear,  definite  aim  before  my  eyes — as  yet.  The  last  half- 
year  in  Berlin  found  me  more  than  ever  occupied  with  thoughts  of  my 
future,  and,  from  some  remarks  in  conversation  which  we  had  when  we 
were  last  together,  you  will  remember  that  the  wishes  were  not  newly 
formed  by  the  sudden  event  (falling,  as  it  were,  from  the  clouds)  of 
Wagner's  proposal,  but  that  they  were  simply  formed  into  clearer  and 
more  distinct  expression. 

In  all  the  conversations  which  we  have  had  together  over  my 
career  since  that  time  you  have  said  most  distinctly  that  you  would  not 
place  any  obstacle  in  the  way  of  my  free  choice,  but  only  your  advice ; 
that  you  would  never  employ  compulsion  ;  that  I  might  have  complete 
confidence  in  you ;  and  that  you  would  let  me  be  happy  in  my  own  way. 
We  then  agreed  that  I  should  study  Jurisprudence  (as  one  of  the  most 
general  branches  of  the  profession)  as  far  as  was  necessary  to  pass  an 
examination,  so  as  to  keep  all  roads  open  to  me.  I  yielded  the  question, 
seeing  the  good  sense  of  your  advice,  and  that  you  wished  to  protect 
yourself  against  all  responsibility,  and  to  have  done  all  that  lay  in  your 
power  to  give  me  the  previous  preparation,  by  the  help  of  which  I  should 
be  enabled  to  choose,  among  a  number  of  similar  careers,  the  branch 
which  I  should  prefer  to  pursue.  I  promised  you  that  I  would  study 
Jurisprudence,  and  still  intend  to  keep  my  promise,  and  do  not  ask  you 
in  the  least  to  release  me  from  it.  But  I  can  no  longer  conceal  from  you 
that  I  am  too  much  wanting  both  in  talent  and  inclination,  and  love  of 
such  a  profession,  ever  to  be  a  good  lawyer  or  an  erudite  man.  It  is 
absolutely  impossible  for  me  to  devote  myself  to  the  Government  service; 
I  am  too  little  adapted  to  this — to  me — indescribably  hateful  profession, 


SWITZERLAls^D.  47 

especially  under  present  circumstances.  My  views — and  they  are  not  of 
a  superficial  nature — I  cannot  sacrifice  for  the  love  of  you.  I  cannot 
stifle  or  tear  myself  away  from  the  principles  which  are  a  part  of  myself, 
nor  can  I  strip  off  my  ideas  of  honour  to  accommodate  circumstances. 
I  would  rather  not  live  at  all  than  have  to  serve  in  a  German  State — in 
Prussia.  All  I  can  do  is  to  sacrifice  and  renounce  myself  in  so  far  that 
I  will  take  no  active  part  in  the  work  of  demolition  of  the  old  order  of 
things,  and  that  I  will  keep  my  opinions  to  myself.  The  more  I  shotdd 
have  to  occupy  myself  with  political  matters — an  integral  part  of  Juris- 
prudence— the  stronger  would  be  every  temptation,  the  harder  every 
conquest  of  self.  What  is  there  left  1  To  be  an  advocate  in  the  old 
sense — and  that  is  something  extremely  disagreeable — 1  am  neither  sharp 
nor  shrewd  enough ;  to  be  one  in  the  modern  sense — to  become  a 
barrister — I  am  wanting  in  oratorical  talent,  the  outward  means  which 
insure  success.  I  have  only  this  alternative  :  either  I  must  embrace  a 
juridical-political  career,  which  could  then  be  only  that  of  a  Revolution- 
ary ;  or  a  musical  career,  where  the  danger  is  rather  that  of  becoming  an 
aristocrat,  and  in  which  I  can  so  steep  myself  that  I  should  cry  '  apage ' 
to  political  strife  and  discussion. 

I  feel  the  inclination  to  both  these  careers  within  me,  but  the 
weight  of  the  scales  turns  in  favour  of  the  latter.  It  is  nobler,  more 
beautiful,  purer,  and  appeals  to  me  incomparably  more,  apart  from  any 
confidence  in  my  own  powers. 

Unfortunately  music  was  for  a  long  time  placed  by  me  in  the 
background.  That  time  is  now  past.  The  movements  of  the  Revolu- 
tion years,  the  contagion  of  the  excitement — these  outward  causes, 
which  I  truly  cannot  help,  brought  out  all  the  violent  fanaticism,  the 
feverish  madness,  before  which  all  my  youthful  enthusiasm  for  freedom 
and  the  like  had  vanished.  That  time  is,  thank  God,  now  over.  The 
reading  of  the  papers  has  lost  its  charm  for  me  ;  I  can  do  without  know- 
ing about  things,  and  if  I  am  left  in  peace  I  can  keep  myself  quiet. 
Just  in  an  equal  degree  has  my  love  for  music  again  obtained  the 
ascendancy.  The  musical  life  in  Zurich  next  winter  would  foster  this 
love  in  the  best  and  richest  manner.  To  be  able  to  write  for  orchestra, 
to  have  the  opportunity  of  having  what  I  write  at  once  performed,  and 
of  thus  studying  instrumentation — I  cannot  imagine  anything  more 
delightful  and  more  attractive.  To  play  Beethoven's  Pianoforte 
Concerti  in  concerts  with  orchestral  accompaniment,  to  make  my  first 
essays  in  conducting  under  "Wagner's  direction — what  could  there  be 
that  would  more  spur  a  man  on  to  activity  and  industry  ]  And  I  need 
not  on  that  account  give  up  the  law  studies,  and,  should  it  come  to  pass, 
I  firmly  intend  not  to  give   them  up ;  I  could  thoroughly  go  over  all 


48  HANS  VON  BiJLOW. 

that  I  have  hitherto  learnt,  and  fix  it  more  clearly  and  firmly  in  my 
head ;  if  necessary  I  could  also  attend  some  courses  at  the  University 
there,  which  is  not  at  all  a  bad  one,  and  at  which,  for  example,  Keller 
and  Bluntschli  have  taught  for  a  long  time.  In  the  summer  I  could 
then  go  either  to  Bonn  or  to  Berlin,  and  carry  on  my  juridical  studies  to 
their  completion,  that  is  to  say,  till  they  were  brought  to  an  end  by  the 
first  examination.  The  winter  half-year  in  Zurich  might  be  considered 
as  a  test — the  best  for  me ;  I  would  make  music  the  principal  subject, 
and  see  to  what  results  I  could  bring  it. 

Weimar  would  be  preferable  to  me,  on  account  of  the  piano-playing 
under  Liszt ;  but  he  has  so  much  to  do  with  others  that  he  could  not 
devote  much  time  to  me,  and  I  should  not  have  there  the  enormous  and 
immeasurable  advantage  of  the  orchestra.  The  useless  rushing  about 
and  trifling  away  one's  time,  together  with  the  innumerable  temptations 
to  waste  one's  money,  which  are  always  occurring  in  Berlin,  Avould  not 
occur  at  all  in  Zurich. 

Please  think  this  over  carefully,  and  wait  at  least  two  to  three  days 
before  you  refuse  your  consent  irrevocably.  I  too  have  thought  the 
matter  fully  over  before  arriving  at  this  result.  If  you  refuse  me  per- 
mission— as  I  almost  fear  you  will — Avell,  in  that  case  I  shall  of  course 
obey  you,  and  go  to  Berlin  for  the  winter,  but  how  long  I  shall  be  able 
to  stand  it  is  a  great  question. 

If  you  should  suspect  that  it  is  Ritter  who  has  influenced  me  in 
this  wish  you  are  entirely  mistaken.  I  could  not  imagine  where  you 
could  have  got  such  a  poor  idea  of  my  firmness  of  purpose  and  indepen- 
dence. Papa  says  little ;  he  lets  his  permission,  i.e.  his  willingness  to 
wait  and  see,  which  he  has  granted,  not  without  great  fear  and  mistrust, 
depend  on  yours. 

I  beg  you  once  more  not  to  follow  your  antipathies,  but  to  think  it 
over ;  make  me  some  concessions,  I  pray.  It  is,  after  all,  no  such  great 
and  formidable  matter — one  trial-half-year. 


Our  life  here  is  very  simple  and  monotonous.  I  hope  we  shall 
have  a  piano  as  soon  as  possible,  for  I  want  one  dreadfully.  In  order 
not  to  let  my  fingers  get  quite  stiff  I  practise  a  good  deal  on  the  dumb 
keyboard  of  Charles  Mayer — apropos,  have  you  seen  him  again  1 — which 
now  makes  up  to  me  for  the  inconvenience  of  having  had  to  drag  it 
about  on  the  journey.  A  further  occupation  of  mine  is  the  working  out 
of  some  musical  ideas  I  got  on  the  journey,  and  the  copying  of  Liszt's 
manuscript,  a  work  demanding  great  care  and  pains.     By  the  help  of  the 


SWITZERLAND.  49 

clever  valet,  Karl,  I  have  learnt  to  handle  the  music-pen ;  and  as  I  want 
to  do  the  thing  well,  and  to  keep  the  pages  perfectly  neat — and  I  don't 
know  a  more  perfect  pattern  than  the  neatness  of  Raff — it  gets  along 
slowly.  The  weather  is  continuously  fine,  and,  though  autumnal  and 
very  cool  in  the  mornings  and  evenings,  yet  one  may  still  call  it  warm. 
The  view  we  have  is  magnificent,  and  has  been  very  much  improved  by 
Papa's  order  to  cut  down  a  lot  of  box  and  underwood  which  was  in  the 
way  of  it.  I  work  with  him  now  and  then  in  the  garden,  although  I  am 
rejoicing  in  a  quite  imposing  cold.  In  the  rooms,  especially  the  dining- 
room,  it  is  cold,  and  when  we  sit  there  I  generally  put  on  my  overcoat. 

I  am  very  anxious  that  my  letter  should  be  posted  today,  so  as  to 
reach  you  as  soon  as  possible,  and  therefore  I  cannot  write  about  the 
journey  now.  I  will  therefore  tell  you  only  the  most  important  things 
about  my  visit  to  Stuttgart. 


I  hope  you  are  well,  and  will  not  take  my  letter  very  much  amiss. 
Write  soon  and  kindly. 


How  the  two  great  artists,  who  exercised  the  most  decisive  influence  on 
Hans  von  Billow's  life  and  work,  and  who,  together  with  him,  constitute  a 
powerful  epoch  in  the  history  of  German  music — how  these  two  spoke  up  for 
their  young  protSgS  at  this  crisis,  will  be  seen  by  the  two  following  letters  to 
Hans'  mother. 


RICHARD  WAGNER  TO  FRANZISKA  VON  BULOW. 

Zurich,  I2th  September  1850. 
My  Dear  Madam, 

My  young  friend  Karl  Ritter,  who  was  desirous  of  in- 
creasing and  strengthening  his  musical  knowledge  by  practice  in  conduct- 
ing, has,  upon  my  recommendation,  obtained  the  post  of  musical  conductor 
at  the  theatre  here  for  the  coming  winter  season.  As  it  was  only 
by  binding  myself  to  superintend  the  practical  work  of  my  young  friend, 
and  to  a  certain  extent  to  direct  it  anew,  that  I  could  make  the  necessary 
guarantee  to  the  Director,  Ritter  has  hereby  a  good  opportunity  of  learn- 
ing in  a  practical  school,  such  as  he  might  not  easily  find  again  under 
such  favourable  conditions,  as  circumstances  might  not  allow  of  this 
everywhere.     Now  in  this  practice  two  can  just  as  well  take  part  as  one, 

D 


50  HANS   VON   BULOW. 

and  I  told  Ritter,  as  he  is  in  the  neighbourhood,  to  tell  your  son  this, 
together  with  the  offer,  on  my  side,  to  help  him  in  the  same  measure  as 
I  am  about  to  help  Ritter,  Well,  yesterday  I  received  a  letter  from 
your  son,  in  Avhich  he  thanks  me  with  the  utmost  warmth  for  this  offer, 
in  the  accepting  of  which  he  sees  the  chance  of  quickly  qualifying  him- 
self for  the  practical  post  of  a  musical  conductor,  by  which  he  would 
soon  be  enabled  to  obtain  a  position  suited  to  his  powers  and  his  most 
ardent  inclinations.  "With  all  the  deeper  sorrow  he  confesses  to  me  that 
he  almost  despairs  of  obtaining  the  sanction  of  his  dear  mother  to  accept 
my  offer,  as  she  has  all  along  cherished  the  desire  that  he  should  embrace 
the  career  of  a  lawyer,  and  that  therefore  he  must  first  at  least  finish  his 
studies  for  that  object. 

Will  you  now  permit  a  man  who  has  attained  to  riper  years,  and 
who  has  been  accustomed,  as  far  as  in  his  power  lay,  to  think  and  act 
not  by  halves,  but  fully, — will  you  permit  him  to  give  his  opinion  on 
this  point?  I  have  followed  the  youthful,  developing  period  of  your  son's 
life  with  cognizance  and  sympathy,  without  exercising  any  other  influence 
upon  him  than  that  of  my  example  as  an  artist,  and  of  my  most  cautious 
advice.  I  have  observed  that  his  love  of  Art,  and  especially  of  music,  is 
based  upon  no  mere  transient  excitement,  but  upon  great,  indeed  uncommon, 
powers.  It  was  with  my  special  concurrence,  and  indeed  at  my  sugges- 
tion, that  he  went  on  with  his  law  studies  with  undiminished  zeal,  as 
there  is  nothing  so  repugnant  to  me  as  a  musician  who  is  that  alone, 
without  any  higher  general  culture.  At  the  wish  of  his  family  he  applied 
himself  also  to  the  study  of  Jurisprudence  ;  full  of  devotion  to  his  mother 
he  tried  hard  to  take  an  interest  in  this  study,  which  in  reality  went 
dreadfully  against  the  grain.  And  now  what  is  the  perfectly  clear  and 
evident  result  of  all  his  pains  and  experience  1  Simply  the  outspoken 
and  absolute  conviction  that  the  more  he  sets  the  one  thing  against  the 
other  the  more  he  feels  that  it  is  Art  alone — in  other  words.  Music — 
that  he  can  love  unceasingly.  This  one  thing,  my  dear  lady,  stands  first 
and  foremost  as  an  undeniable  fact,  and  I  cannot  doubt  that,  when  once  you 
yourself  are  convinced  of  this  wish  of  your  son  to  devote  himself  entirely 
to  music,  you  will  make  it  your  own  wish  also.  I  should  probably  be 
doing  you  the  greatest  injustice  did  I  in  the  least  doubt  this ;  but  anxiety 
about  your  son's  future  might  suggest  one  wish  to  you,  namely  to  secure 
him  from  the  possibility  of  repenting  his  decision,  and  from  the  conse- 
quences which  might  arise  to  his  so-called  position  in  life.  You  would 
wish  your  son  at  least  to  finish  his  studies  for  the  law,  so  that,  in  the 
possible  event  of  his  not  succeeding  in  his  artistic  career,  the  other 
might  remain  open  to  him.  Whilst  acknowledging  therein  the  warmest 
motherly  love  and  solicitude,  I  must  nevertheless  be  permitted  to  reply 


SWITZERLAND.  51 

that  I  consider  the  carrying  out  of  such  a  wish  would  be  ruinous ;  ruinous 
for  the  further  development  of  the  character  and  powers  of  your  son, 
ruinous  for  the  continuation  of  a  healthy,  loving  relation  betwixt  son  and 
mother.  After  the  unusually  rapid  development  of  the  powers  and  the  char- 
acter of  your  son,  you  would  be  guilty  of  an  open  injustice  if  you  did  not 
recognise  this,  and  mistrusted  it  owing  to  your  own  doubt ;  but  by  hold- 
ing fast  to  that  second  wish  on  your  side  this  mistrust  would  be  distinctly 
expressed.  The  germ  of  all  radically  ruinous  evil  is  mistrust,  and  I  feel 
sure  that  is  your  experience  also  :  should  you  now — just  at  this  time — 
show  it  to  your  son,  by  using  your  mother's  influence  to  constrain  him  to 
return  to  a  study  which  in  his  innermost  soul  he  loathes,  without  the 
wish,  without  the  bent,  and  therefore  without  the  prospect  of  reaping 
any  advantage  from  it,  you  destroy  his  zeal  for  work  in  general,  shatter 
and  weaken  his  power,  and  lay  the  foundations  of  a  broken-down  and 
only  half -developed  character,  which  will  remain  so  for  the  rest  of  his 
days,  and  you  will  reap  for  certain  that  most  unwished-for  reward — the 
reward  of  an  equally  broken  and  shattered  love.  I  cannot  recall  with- 
out great  pain  a  number  of  years  of  my  life  in  which  I,  for  similar  reasons, 
had  entirely  separated  myself  from  my  good  (but  on  this  point  mistaken) 
mother ;  and  yet  I  cannot  say  otherwise  than  that  I  wish  your  son  an 
energy  similar  to  what  mine  was  when  I  had  strength  to  resist  even  the 
noblest  tie  of  nature  which  would  have  hindered  me  in  the  exercise  of 
my  free  choice  ! 

If  you  will  further  permit  me,  on  the  ground  of  my  own  experience, 
to  give  advice  which  I  trust  you  will  not  consider  intrusive,  but  tendered 
from  the  purest  human  sympathy,  it  is  this  :  give  willingly  and  speedily 
your  consent  to  this,  so  that  your  son  may  not  go  on  living  a  moment 
longer  in  coercion  against  his  well-founded  and  well-tested  inclination ; 
grant  him  permission  to  spend  the  coming  winter  season  with  me  here  in 
Zurich,  so  that,  with  his  friend  Ritter,  he  may  learn  under  my  direction 
the  practical  work  of  a  musical  conductor ;  wait  with  patience  and  see 
what  further  turn  his  life  as  a  practical  artist  takes;  have  full  confidence 
in  whatsoever  depends  on  my  small  powers  of  help,  but  especially  in 
what  our  friend  Liszt  may  be  able  to  do  to  help  him  on ;  and  in  every 
case  where  trials  await  him,  where  trouble  threatens  him,  where  he  needs 
help,  do  all  that  lies  in  your  special  power  to  sustain  him  with  your 
self-sacrificing  support !  You  will  thus  have  the  satisfaction  of  calling  a 
worthy,  perhaps  great,  artist  your  son,  of  presenting  to  the  world  a  con- 
tented and  self-dependent  man,  and  of  having  won  and  preserved  the 
unspeakable  happiness  of  his  truest  and  deepest  love  as  a  son  and  a 
human  being ! 

Pardon   the  candour  and    plain-speaking  of   my  letter !     I  address 


62  HANS    VON   Bt)LOW. 

myself  to  no  one  to  whom  I  may  not  venture  to  speak  plainly  and 
candidly,  but  I  do  so  to  you  in  a  special  and  sacred  cause,  in  which  I  am 
convinced  that  the  happiness  of  a  human  being — or  rather,  considering 
your  deep  love  to  him,  of  two  human  beings — is  at  stake,  whom  I  would 
fain  see  happy. — With  deep  respect  and  devotion, 

I  am 

Yours, 

Richard  Wagner. 


LISZT  TO  FKANZISKA  VON  BULOW. 

Weymar,  28^/i  September  1850. 

Madame  la  Baronnb, 

Several  friends  of  your  son's  have  spoken  to  me 
(unknown  to  him,  as  I  believe),  to  beg  me  respectfully  to  submit  a 
request  to  you.  Little  as  I  am  calculated  to  serve  as  a  negotiator  with 
you  for  wishes  and  hopes — a  noble  and  legitimate  ambition, — yet  I  confess 
that  the  knowledge  of  the  duty,  as  well  as  the  sincere  affection  I  bear  to 
your  son,  will  not  permit  me  to  put  entirely  aside  the  pressing  requests 
which,  I  feel  sure,  are  in  accordance  with  your  son's  vocation.  Whatever 
decision  you  may  come  to  with  regard  to  the  future  of  his  career,  pray 
excuse,  Madame,  the  liberty  I  am  taking  in  meddling  thus  with  questions 
of  a  nature  at  once  so  serious  and  so  delicate,  and  do  not  impute  to  this 
letter  any  motive  contrary  to  my  habits  and  convictions. 

Hans  is  evidently  gifted  with  a  musical  organisation  of  the  rarest 
kind.  His  executive  talent  will  easily  place  him  in  the  front  rank  of 
the  greatest  pianists,  and  his  essays  at  composition  denote  quite  excep- 
tional qualities  of  imagination,  of  individuality,  and  of  conception. 
Besides,  Hans  has  taken  an  antipathy  to  every  career  which  would  sever 
him  from  Art.  Permit  me,  then,  to  confide  to  your  motherly  love  the 
happy  solution  of  the  noble  struggle  between  his  natural  vocation  and 
that  destined  for  him,  however  bright  and  alluring  it  might  be ;  and,  in 
view  of  the  sentiments  which  dictate  this  letter,  pray  pardon  the  inter- 
cession I  have  ventured  to  make  to  you  today. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be,  Madame  la  Baronne,  with  deep  respect, 

Your  devoted  Servant, 

F.  Liszt. 


SWITZERLAND.  53 

TO  HIS  SISTER. 

Zurich,  26^/i  October  1850. 
Dear  Isidore, 

It  really  made   me  very  unhappy  to   have   to   leave 
Otlishausen  so  abruptly,  without  seeing  you  again,  without  saying  good- 
bye to  you.     But  I  could  not  help  it ;  I  was  forced  to  act  as  I  did,  and 
I  do  not  repent  it,  and  trust  I  never  shall  do  so.     I  had  almost  let 
myself  be  over-persuaded  by  Papa,  and  had  resolved  to  travel  back  to 
Berlin  without  even  seeing  Wagner,  when  Ritter  brought  me  a  letter 
from  Wagner,  which  made  me  instantly  resolve  to  go  to  Zurich,  there  to  fill 
the  post  of  musical  conductor  under  W.'s  direction.     We  did  the  trip  on 
foot   in  two  days :   firstly  in  order  to  escape  any  possible  pursuit  on 
Papa's  side,  and  also  because  I  wanted  to  test  whether  I  had  the  energy 
to  do  that  piece  on  foot  in  the  most  awful  weather,  amid  ceaseless  rain 
and  storm.     Wonderful  to  relate,  it  did  not  hurt  nie.     I  arrived  dead- 
beat,  but  the  next  morning  I  was  pretty  weU  refreshed  and  jolly,  a  sign 
that  hard  bodily  fatigue  does  not  do  any  harm.     In  fact,  in  spite  of  the 
unhealthy  climate  and  the  cold  weather,  I  feel  myself  pretty  well  (low 
be  it  spoken),  and  I  look  well,  and  have  nothing  to  complain  of  beyond 
some  little  pain  in  head  and  stomach,  whereas  I  had  more  than  twenty 
most  beautiful  opportunities  of  catching  a  downright  good  cold.     That  I 
have  not  done  so  is  chiefly  thanks  to  my  habit  of  always  pouring  perfectly 
cold  water  over  myself  every  morning,  without  regard  to  the  temperature, 
and  now  I  have  got  so  accustomed  to  this  that  I  do  it  almost  with 
pleasure.     I  am  now  tremendously  busy  with  rehearsals,  early  in  the 
morning  and  in  the  afternoon  regularly,  from  three  to  four  hours  each 
time.     I  have  already  conducted  four  times  in  public ;  twice  it  was  the 
farce,  '  Einmal  hunderttausend  Thaler,'  and  of  operas,  *  The  Daughter 
of  the  Regiment '  and  *  Czaar  und  Zimmermann.'     It  is  not  such  an  easy 
task  as  it  appears ;   it  requires  a  thorough,  extensive  study,  almost  to 
the  point  of  learning  the  operas  by  heart,  and  that  is  a  great  strain,  and 
also  takes  a  great  deal  out  of  one.     The  reason  I  have  so  much  to  do  now 
is  that  Ritter  (somewhat  unpractically)  is  at  present  not  conducting  at 
all  until  I  have  had  a  thorough  drilling  in  it,  which  will  take  till  New 
Year.     Ritter  is  now  composing  an  Opera ;  in  January  and  February  I 
shall  probably  do  the  same. 

The  singers,  who  for  a  wonder  are  all  extremely  good,  at  first 
intrigued  with  the  orchestra  against  me,  because  I  am  so  young  and 
inexperienced,  and  had  not  yet  commanded  sufficient  respect.  However 
Wagner,  who  is  perfectly  satisfied  with  me,  held  them  in  check,  threaten- 
ing that  he  should  resign — i.e.  that  he  should  withdraw  his  interest,  his 


54  HANS  VON   BULOW, 

superintendence,  and  his  conducting-in-chief — if  they  did  not  behave 
properly  to  me.  People  here  have  a  tremendous  respect  and  esteem  for 
him,  and  a  small  portion  of  these  will  now  be  transmitted  to  his  pupils. 
I  have  already  made  some  friends  among  the  artists,  and  soon  I  hope  to 
have  them  all  under  my  thumb. 

The  Federal  Times,  which  is  the  first  paper  here,  said  of  my  conduct- 
ing in  '  The  Daughter  of  the  Regiment : '  "  Herr  von  Biilow,  a  pupil  of 
Wagner's,  has  already  shown  himself  in  this  performance  to  be  a  very 
talented  conductor ;  and  the  one  or  two  slips  that  occurred  were  merely 
the  result  of  the  orchestra  not  showing  enough  confidence  in  the  young 
man."  In  order  that  you  may  not  doubt  the  truth  of  this,  I  send  you  the 
next  critique  in  print. 

With  a  monthly  salary  of  fifty  gulden,  Ritter  and  I  must  both  get 
along  till  the  New  Year.  The  morning  coffee  is  suspended,  and  we 
enjoy  a  water-soup,  which  we  make  ourselves,  and  to  which  I  have  grown 
quite  accustomed.  We  dine  with  Wagner,  where  the  cooking  is  capital. 
His  wife  thoroughly  understands  it,  and  she  is  most  kind  and  obliging ; 
for  instance,  the  other  day  she  mended  my  (I  was  going  to  say  thy,  for  I 
have  got  so  mixed  over  the  mine  and  thine,  owing  to  the  Zurich  Com- 
munism) umbrella — which  I  should  really  have  been  ashamed  to  take  out 
with  me — without  saying  a  word.  Forgive  me  for  writing  so  hurriedly 
and  carelessly,  but  in  a  moment  I  must  go  to  rehearsal.  So  only  a  word 
more. 

Write  me  word  very  soon  how  you  are,  how  the  journey  went  off, 
how  you  like  Dresden,  also  how  Mamma  seems  disposed  towards  me.  I 
don't  know  whether  she  would  allow  me  to  write  to  her  about  myself 
and  my  life.  You  say  you  truly  love  me,  and  Mamma  has  often  said  so 
too  ;  well  now,  for  love  of  nie,  do  be  very  good  and  gentle  in  your  be- 
haviour towards  Mamma ;  try  to  make  her  forget  me  in  you,  that  thus 
she  may  not  continue  to  feel  so  aggrieved  and  angry  with  me.  Then 
perhaps  gradually,  later  on,  you  may  become  the  mediator  between  us. 
My  address  for  the  present  is  :  Oethenbacher  Gasse  in  der  Akazie,  4th 
floor.     Love  to  Wach.* 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Zurich,  2Qth  October  1850. 

Dear,  Honoured  Mother, 

I  have  long  hesitated  and  delayed  writing  to  you,  for  I 
have  an  uneasy  conscience  with  regard  to  you ;  I  have  violated  all  the 

*  The  dog. 


SWITZERLAND.  55 

duties  of  a  child  towards  you,  and  am  fully  conscious  of  it,  for  it  was  no 
levity  that  carried  me  away,  no  upset  that  has  taken  place,  or  else  repent- 
ance would  have  followed,  and  I  should  not  have  remained  here,  and 
our  relation  to  one  another  would  never  have  been  broken  or  disturbed. 
I  do  not,  however,  repent  the  act  which,  from  the  standpoint  of  my 
sacred  duties  towards  you,  is  to  be  condemned,  and  I  only  fear  that  your 
just  anger  has  won  the  day  over  your  motherly  love  :  I  fear,  and  tears 
come  into  my  eyes  at  this  most  terrible  of  all  fears,  that  you  might  want 
to  know  nothing  more  about  your  son,  who  separated  himself  of  his  own 
accord  from  his  mother  ;  that  you  would  not  recognise  him  as  such  any 
more ;  that  you  would  perhaps  destroy  his  letters  unread.  I  have  not 
made  myself  any  pleasing  illusions  ;  I  made  it  clear  to  myself  that  this 
would  all  be  quite  natural,  that  I  alone  am  guilty  and  have  not  deserved 
anything  different.  And  yet  I  could  not  abandon  myself  to  it,  I  could 
not  believe  it,  and  the  dread  of  the  unhappy,  terrible  certainty  that  it 
was  so  has  kept  me  from  writing.  Although  I  still  feel  the  same  dread  in 
all  its  intensity,  it  leaves  me  no  peace,  and  impels  me  to  try  to  ask  you  if  it  is 
really  true  that  I  have  irrevocably  broken  the  tie  that  bound  us  together, 
that  I  have  for  ever  forfeited  my  mother's  love  by  my  act  of  rebellious 
disobedience.  I  cannot  believe  that  it  is  really  possible  that  your  un- 
conquerable antipathy  to  the  man  whom  I  so  highly  esteem,  and  who, 
by  his  warm  and  hearty  sympathy,  by  his  fatherly  solicitude  for  me,  has 
the  greatest  claims  on  my  love  and  gratitude,  can  be  so  powerful  as  to 
tear  your  son  from  your  heart.  And  even  if  it  were  possible  that  at  this 
moment  your  dislike  of  the  noblest,  the  most  loveable  and  honourable 
man  could  be  so  deep-rooted  as  to  have  the  upper  hand — yet  I  hope  that 
the  future  wUl  make  you  feel  kinder,  more  forgiving,  more  tolerant  to- 
wards opposing  views  and  ideas,  and  that  you  may  even  feel  a  little 
esteem  and  interest  in  the  man  to  whom,  in  a  sense,  I  gave  over  the 
decision  as  to  my  life's  calling,  even  before  I  went  to  Switzerland  to  see 
my  father.  That  it  is  only  Music  that  I  love,  and  for  which  I  have  a 
true  inclination ;  that  it  is  only  in  this  career  that  I  can  find  happiness  and 
inner  peace,  in  spite  of  outward  troubles  and  bothers;  of  this  I  have  long 
been  convinced ;  and  that  I  should  be  of  use  in  the  life  of  an  artist,  and 
should  be  able  to  make  the  most  of  my  talents  for  my  own  and  others' 
benefit,  this  has  been  perfectly  clear  to  me  for  a  long  time  past.  The 
career  of  a  lawyer,  the  service  of  the  State,  in  which  I  foresaw  that  I 
should  only  vegetate,  without  aim  or  influence,  without  being  of  any  use 
to  my  fellow-men,  but  rather  the  contrary — these  long  ago  appeared  abso- 
lutely impossible  to  me  ;  and  it  became  only  a  question  whether  I  could 
postpone  the  decision  until  I  had  finished  my  studies — that  is  to  say, 
till  I  was  a  half-fledged  lawyer,  with  my  head  crammed  full  of  a  lot  of 


56  HANS  VON   BiJLOW. 

useless,  prosaic  stuff,  which  might  have  supplanted  everything  better  and 
nobler  in  me  by  the  weight  of  its  bread-earning  possibilities,  and  perhaps 
stifling  more  worthy  germs,  so  that  my  life  after  a  year  and  a  half  would 
have  been  spoilt,  dead,  and  broken  !  I  kept  thinking  I  should  be  able  to 
hold  out,  but  in  Leipzig  and  Berlin  I  was  often  on  the  point  of  making  a 
great  resolution  to  come  to  a  decision,  which  I  have  now  done.  Wagner's 
letters  to  me  at  Otlishausen  brought  my  resolve  to  a  speedy  crisis.  To 
be  with  Wagner,  to  live  near  him,  to  study  in  a  practical  way  under  his 
direction,  so  as  to  become  an  artist — this  is  tautology,  since  my  ambition 
is  to  be  an  artist,  not  a  mere  musician,  for  which  latter  there  was  ample 
opportunity  in  Berlin,  Leipzig,  etc.  It  is  my  determination,  based  upon 
the  tendency  of  my  powers  and  talents,  to  strive  to  follow  Wagner  with- 
out slavish,  childish  imitation.  I  say  now — better  even  a  medium 
musician  than  a  good,  so-called  able  lawyer.  Wagner  thinks  I  shall  be- 
come a  good  musician  and  an  artist  of  importance ;  it  is  for  me  to  justify 
his  confidence  in  me  in  the  course  of  time.  This  winter  I  hope  to  finish 
my  bread-earning  studies,  and  to  become  a  good  all-round  conductor,  for 
which  Wagner  says  I  possess  the  most  decided  talent,  by  the  keenness  of 
my  ear,  my  quick  perception,  rapid  survey,  and  finished  playing.  As  a 
conductor  I  can  then  earn  my  bread  anywhere,  and  should  be  in  a  posi- 
tion to  compose,  without  any  anxiety  on  that  score.  When  you  wrote  to 
me  that  you  consented  to  my  devoting  myself  now  to  music,  my  father 
made  out  that  you  had  granted  the  main  thing,  and  that  it  was  only  a 
secondary  matter  that  you  were  refusing,  and  that  I  was  wrong  to  con- 
found the  one  with  the  other.  Papa  acted  wrongly  towards  you,  and 
later  on  he  must  have  regretted  his  over-haste,  and  must  have  felt  that  it 
was  his  duty  not  to  thwart  your  plans  and  wishes,  for  he  never  left  off 
working  upon  me,  till  he  had  almost  over-persuaded  me,  and  I  had  resigned 
myself.  Then  suddenly  Wagner  sent  Kitter  to  me  with  a  letter  which 
he  had  written  me  :  this  one  letter  threw  all  my  resignation  to  the  winds ; 
it  was  this  letter  that  made  everything  clear  to  me ;  it  was  this  letter 
that  made  me  undertake  the  journey  to  Zurich  on  foot ;  it  was  this  letter, 
and  still  more  my  own  personal  talk  with  Wagner,  that  made  me  firmly 
resolve  to  spend  this  winter  with  him  in  Zurich,  and  no  one  in  the  world 
can  talk  me  out  of  it.  I  felt  I  must  act  so  as  to  leave  no  possible  road 
of  return  open,  no  possible  way  of  regret.  Now  the  die  is  cast.  I  am 
going  to  be  a  musician ;  I  am  doing  that  from  which  I  cannot  separate 
myself,  and  I  hope  thus  to  become  a  happy  and  contented  man. 

If  you  still  condemn  me,  I  hope  that,  by  my  own  talent,  and  by  my 
musical  powers,  which  Liszt  and  Wagner  affirm  to  be  unusual,  I  shall 
bring  you  round  to  a  different  point  of  view.  Let  this  be  my  care ;  do 
not  let  every  spark  of  love  for  me  die  in  you  j  at  least  allow  me  to  write 


SWITZERLAND.  57 

to  you  from  here   how  I  am  living,  what  I   am   doing,    and  how   I 

am. 

Would  it  really  be  the  same  thing  to  you  if  I  died  1 

Now  farewell,  and   be  happy.      May  Isidore  bring   you  happiness, 

for  I  cannot  in  the  way  you  wish.     Perhaps  you  will  write  mo  a  line 

sometime,  when  your  indignation  has  abated.     I  shall  go  on  writing  to 

you  until  you  forbid  it. 


TO  HIS  FATHEK. 

ZuBiCH,  9th  November  1850. 

Dbabbst  Father, 

You  have  no  idea  how  terrifically  I  am  working  here. 
Rehearsal  upon  rehearsal,  looking  through  and  correcting  the  orchestral 
parts,  in  which  the  most  flagrant  disorder,  the  crassest  carelessness, 
reigns,  composing  couplets  and  that  sort  of  thing  for  farces,  so  that  I 
have  hardly  a  moment  to  myself,  and  have  had  to  neglect  my  piano-play- 
ing more  than  I  could  wish. 

At  this  very  moment  too  I  have  not  time  to  write  a  decent  letter, 
so  I  must  beg  you  for  today  to  be  satisfied  with  the  mention  of  the  most 
important  facts. 

Next  Tuesday  I  play  at  the  first  subscription  concert,  and  shall 
play  two  brilliant  and  startling  pieces  (which  at  a  debut  here  is  a  neces- 
sity per  se)  by  Kullak  and  Liszt,  upon  '  Norma'  and  'Lucia.'  At  the 
second  or  third  concert  I  am  sure  to  play  again,  and  should  then  cer- 
tainly choose  a  Beethoven  Sonata  and  the  'Tannhauser'  Overture  in  the 
Liszt  arrangement.  So  I  must  make  use  of  every  free  moment  for 
practising,  so  as  to  avoid  the  danger  of  a  terrific  fiasco.  I  hope  and 
believe  also  that  it  will  go  well,  and  that  I  shall  have  a  success. 

With  regard  to  conducting,  I  have  directed  three  operas  since  you 
were  here  :  *  Czaar  und  Zimmermann '  was  regularly  murdered ;  I  had 
only  received  the  score  overnight ;  it  was  a  mere  makeshift  of  a 
performance,  and  Wagner  was  ill,  so  could  not  appear  instead  of  me.  I 
had  some  scenes  with  the  singers  and  orchestra,  who,  enticed  by  Director 
Kramer  with  the  bait  of  the  Wagner  conducting,  thought  they  could 
push  matters  so  far  as  to  insist  on  Wagner  always  conducting,  and  not 
allowing  me  to  do  so  until  I  had  gone  through  the  necessary  routine — 
(without  the  practice  in  conducting !).  Wagner  issued  a  kind  of  mani- 
festo to  the  rebels,  which  brought  them  in  some  measure  to  reason. 

The   second   opera  was  the  *  Barber  of  Seville.'     The  singers  and 


68  HANS  VON   BiJLOW, 

orchestra  took  great  pains ;  the  public  was  more  well-disposed  than  it 
had  ever  been,  and  showed  unusual  interest  and  appreciation.  I  myself 
had  the  score  in  my  head,  was  thorouglily  sure  and  master  of  it,  and 
everything  went  capitally.  I  had  shown  that  my  conducting  could 
make  a  success  ;  the  public  had  at  last  comprehended  that  not  merely 
the  person  of  the  conductor,  but  also  the  musical  forces  in  general,  ought 
to  awaken  sympathy ;  so  that  by  this  performance,  about  which  I  have 
received  friendly  congratulations  from  many  sides,  I  feel  that  I  am  fixed 
rather  more  firmly  in  my  seat.  Next  ^Monday  the  '  Barber '  will  be 
repeated. 

The  third  opera  I  conducted  came  to  grief  through  the  apathy  of 
the  public,  and  the  consequent  disinclination  and  reluctance  of  the  singers ; 
that  is  to  say,  it  did  not  actually  fail,  but  on  the  stage  they  intended 
to  make  it  do  so,  in  order  perhaps  to  throw  the  blame  on  me  afterwards. 
It  was  Auber's  '  Fra  Diavolo ; '  pretty  music,  but  cold,  written  by  the 
composer  twenty  years  ago  for  one  season,  but  raised  by  the  Germans  to 
the  rank  of  an  immortal  work,  whereas  even  in  France  no  one  thinks 
of  it  now.  The  dialogue  is  weak,  and  the  opera  is  based  upon  a  story 
uninteresting  when  once  one  knows  it,  and  can  only  maintain  any  zest 
by  the  help  of  the  actors,  and  by  adding  any  humour  that  is  possible  to 
it ;  and  even  this  was  wanting.  Thus  it  came  about  that  the  public, 
which  happened  not  to  be  in  such  a  good  humour  that  night,  remained 
cold,  whereas  in  the  '  Barber '  people  had  been  carried  away  by  the  ex- 
cessively comic  situations  and  personages.  Then  began  the  old  story 
over  again.  The  matter  is  even  less  ideal  than  we  all  thought  at  first, 
and  the  fault  lies  both  in  the  false  perception  of  things  on  the  side  of 
the  public,  who  will  hardly  allow  themselves  to  be  attracted  except  by 
"Wagner's  personal  conducting,  and  also  on  the  side  of  the  singers. 
However  the  chief  thing  is  that  I  should  learn  conducting ;  and  this  I 
shall  do,  and,  I  hope,  much  more  besides,  which  at  any  rate  is  not  im- 
probable, as  we  liave  only  one  month  behind  us  and  six  still  to"  come. 
Under  these  circumstances  Ritter  cannot  yet  take  part  in  the  conduct- 
ing, but  has  to  wait  till  I  am  thoroughly  broken  in  and  all  prejudices 
are  overcome.  By  New  Year,  I  hope,  the  work  will  be  divided  between 
Ritter  and  me,  and  that  I  shall  then  have  time  for  other  things.  Last 
Monday  I  conducted  a  concert  which  an  Italianised  Swiss  singer,  Stigelli, 
gave  in  the  theatre,  and  at  this  I  had  also  to  play  the  piano  accompani- 
ments, so  that  I  had  to  keep  running  backwards  and  forwards  from  the 
stage  to  the  orchestra.  Next  Friday  '  Masaniello '  is  to  be  given,  and 
probably  I  shall  conduct  it,  as  well  as  the  *  Water-Carrier '  and  Mehul's 
'  Joseph,'  which  are  to  follow  next. 

Yesterday  was  '  Don  Juan,'  under  "Wagner's  conducting,  with   an 


SWITZERLAND.  59 

overflowing  house,  and  yet  a  most  dull,  stupid,  and  thankless  public. 
Wagner  had  taken  exceptional  trouble,  and  we  had  all  three  been  several 
days  and  nights  correcting  errors  in  the  orchestral  parts,  replacing 
instruments  which  were  wanting,  such  as  trombones,  by  others ; 
deep  trumpets,  etc.  Wagner  had  had  the  Italian  recitatives  translated 
into  good  German  dialogue,  some  even  admitted  in  their  original  form  ; 
he  had  also  simplified  the  scenery,  and  had  cleverly  reduced  the  ever- 
lasting scene-changing  to  a  single  one  in  the  middle  of  the  first  act ;  and 
further  he  had  arranged  that  the  last  aria  of  Donna  Anna,  which  is 
usually  sung  in  a  room,  should  be  given  in  the  churchyard,  to  which  she 
goes  with  Octavio,  for  whom  a  little  recitative,  composed  by  Wagner, 
precedes  the  aria  as  a  sort  of  introduction  to  it.  Thus  a  sensible  con- 
sistency was  given  to  the  entire  dramatic  action,  which,  alas !  is  almost 
always  wanting  to  a  performance.  It  has  driven  me  nearly  wild  when  I 
remember  how  Wagner  used  to  be  accused  in  Dresden  of  conducting 
Mozart's  operas  badly  on  purpose,  and  how  he  could  not  bear  this  music  in 
his  own  self-conceit.  The  warm  and  living  artistic  feeling  of  reverence 
for  Mozart,  shown  by  this  disinterested  act,  will  not  be  brought  to  light 
by  any  of  these  would-be  adorers.  It  is  clear  that  '  Don  Juan,'  as  given 
everywhere  up  to  now,  does  not  give  the  pleasure  or  make  the  effect 
which  it  can  and  ought  to  do ;  and  there  is  need  of  ample  reform  in  this 
matter. 

jN^ot  a  line  from  Mamma  yet.  I  did  not  know  her  new  address,  so 
have  gone  on  sending  to  the  old  one. 

At  the  end  of  this  month  we  are  leaving  Oethenbacher  Gasse,  and 
removing  to  a  better  lodging  with  some  very  respectable  people,  silk  manu- 
facturers. We  shall  have  two  nice  rooms,  separated  by  a  passage ;  and 
for  lodging,  fire,  attendance,  breakfast,  and  dinner,  we  shall  each  pay  four 
Zurich  gulden  a  week.     One  could  not  well  have  anything  cheaper. 

Thank  you  for  the  news  about  yourself  and  your  life.  I  am 
delighted  that  Willi  *  is  well,  and  is  gradually  growing  out  of  babyhood. 

I  wiU  write  to  you  after  the  concert.  Next  time  I  play  in  public 
you  will  come  over,  won't  you  ? 

TO  HIS  FATHER. 

Zurich,  2nd  December  1850. 
Dearest  Father, 

Yesterday   we   removed,   and   then,  to   finish  up,   I   hear 
from  my  landlord  that  the  servant  lost  a  letter  Avhich  I  had  given  about 

*  Hans'  half-brother,  by  his  father's  second  marriage. 


60  HANS  VON   BOLOW. 

three  weeks  ago  to  be  posted  to  you,  because  I  was  so  busy  with 
rehearsals  that  I  could  not  find  time  to  post  it  myself.  I  need  not  say 
how  vexed  I  have  been  about  this,  and  all  the  more  so  because  by  this 
carelessness  I  have  lost  my  passport,  which,  together  with  Wagner's  article 
on  '  Judaism  in  Art,'  I  had  put  into  the  letter,  in  order  to  beg  you  to 
send  the  passport  to  Leipzig  to  get  it  extended  for  me.  In  the  same 
letter  I  also  begged  you  for  ten  gulden,  which  however  I  do  not  now 
require,  as  Mayer- Wordraiiller,  the  financial  director  of  the  concerts,  has 
meanwhile  sent  forty  francs  (French)  for  my  performance,  which  has 
succeeded  well,  as  far  as  success  here  goes.  He  has  also  asked  me  to 
play  again  at  the  fourth  concert,  which  will  take  place  early  in  the 
new  year. 

I  came  home  today  after  the  rehearsal,  and  then  something 
happened  which  peremptorily  demands  our  (Wagner's  and  my)  retire- 
ment from  the  theatre.  Today  I  conduct  for  the  last  time  in 
*  Masaniello.'  Wagner  will  look  after  my  immediate  future.  Possibly 
the  termination  of  my  engagement  with  the  theatre  may  be  a  gain  for 
me  as  regards  my  mother.  Enough  that  it  is  simply  impossible  to 
continue  the  affair  as  hitherto.  The  people  and  the  circumstances  are 
so  odious,  and  there  is  perpetual  friction.  At  any  rate  the  two  months 
have  not  been  wasted ;  but  I  have  learnt  some  things  which  will  be  of 
great  use  to  me.  I  cannot  tell  you  all  the  details ;  I  only  know  that  the 
principal  reason  why  we  must  give  notice  today — an  eventuality  that 
we  have  long  been  anticipating,  and  have  well  thought  over — lies  in  a 
quarrel  with  the  husband  of  the  first  singer,  who  has  herself  given 
notice,  because  she  will  not  continue  to  sing  under  my  conductorship. 
She  is  such  a  favourite  that  Kramer  would  be  ruined  if  she  went  away, 
so  I  must  make  up  my  mind  to  be  the  sacrifice.  No  sort  of  adjustment 
is  possible ;  and  even  if  things  could  be  made  straight  again — which 
would  only  be  possible  by  the  humiliation  of  Wagner  and  myself — they 
could  not  last ;  on  the  first  opportunity  there  would  be  a  fresh  scandal, 
aud  things  would  come  to  the  same  end.  Therefore  better  today,  when 
we  can  retreat  honourably,  than  tomorrow. 

You  will  readily  understand  how  excited  I  feel  about  the  matter  at 
this  moment.  I  hope  on  that  account  you  will  excuse,  first,  this  letter, 
and  secondly,  my  long  silence,  which  has  been  so  long  owing  to  the  loss 
of  my  letter  without  any  fault  of  mine. 

The  gods  alone  know  what  is  to  be  done  about  the  passport. 


SWITZERLAND.  61 

TO  HIS  FATHER. 

Zurich,  9th  December  1850. 
Dear  Father, 

Your  letter  has  pained  me  dreadfully,  and  I  can  only 
console  myself  by  thinking  that  you  have  misunderstood  my  last  letter 
in  several  points,  possibly  owing  to  my  haste  and  want  of  detail. 
Perhaps  we  shall  see  each  other  soon,  and  a  personal  talk  may  scatter 
the  dark  cloud  which  hangs  over  my  love  for  you,  owing  to  your  threat 
of  having  nothing  more  to  do  with  me  if  I  remain  in  Zurich  without 
having  any  active  practical  work  to  do  with  "Wagner.  I  have  become  a 
man  by  my  own  energetic  act.  I  have  a  conscience  and  a  conviction, 
upon  which  I  consistently  act,  and  I  think  these  ought  to  be  respected 
by  everyone.  I  am  a  musician,  and  intend  to  remain  one.  I  am  a 
follower — now  a  pupil. — of  "Wagner's,  and  shall  prove  this  by  my  actions. 
That  is  irrevocably  decided.  "Why  then  your  doubt,  which  almost 
becomes  a  serious  prohibition ?  Why  not  say  :  "Go  on  as  you  have 
begun,  my  best  wishes  shall  go  with  you ;  you  have  not  yet  proved 
yourself  unworthy  of  my  confidence  "  ?  "Why  cannot  we  be  on  terms  of 
aflfection,  so  that,  when  I  recognise  your  handwriting  on  a  letter,  I  may 
break  the  seal  joyfully,  and  say,  "  It  is  from  my  good  father  ! "  Save 
yourself  reproaches  till  I  have  done  something  really  wrong,  I  do 
implore  you.  If  you  withdraw  your  love  from  me  because  I  place 
Wagner,  whom  I  love  and  honour  more  every  hour,  above  everything, 
then  with  tears  I  must  say  to  you,  "  Well,  do  it  then,  and  give  it  all  to 
your  Willi,  to  whom  I  on  my  side  will  give  all  a  brother's  love  in  place 
of  my  filial  love."  But  believe  me  that  I  am  so  steadfast  that  I  am  not 
afraid  of  anything,  and  take  the  consequences  of  my  actions  upon 
myself  with  my  eyes  open. 

To  return  to  my  mother  is  impossible.  I  have  wept  bitter  tears 
in  thinking  of  her,  but  I  see  that  her  fanatical  feeling  is  stronger  than 
her  mother's  love,  which  makes  my  heart  easier. 

As  regards  my  immediate  future,  chance  has  interposed  so  favour- 
ably that  I  might  almost  be  superstitious.  Yesterday  I  received  an 
offer  of  an  engagement  as  musical  conductor  of  the  theatre  at  St.  Gall, 
from  Herbort,  the  director,  who  had  heard  that  I  had  broken  with 
Zurich. 

The  conditions  are  acceptable,  the  principal  one  being  that  I  should 
go  there  speedily.  Wagner  was  at  first  against  my  taking  it,  but  after 
thinking  it  over  he  advised  me  to  accept  it,  which  I  have  already  done. 
I  leave  here  on  Tuesday  evening ;  Ritter  goes  with  me,  and  will  begin 
by  being  chorus-master  at  the  opera  under  me  as  conductor. 


62  HANS  VON  BiJLOW. 

The  position  will  be  more  agreeable  than  here,  as  I  shall  come  out 
quite  independently,  without  any  teacher  at  my  back ;  and  I  shall  have 
to  deal  with  smaller  powers,  it  is  true,  but  also  less  arrogant.  I  shall  also 
have  no  rivals,  as  I  had  here,  wanting  to  step  into  the  position  of 
musical  director.  So  for  the  present  I  am  away  from  Wagner,  and  in 
your  neighbourhood  ;  when  the  winter  is  OA'^er  I  shall  probably  return  to 
"Wagner,  in  order  to  write  an  opera  under  his  guidance  and  help.  I 
want  immensely  to  write  a  Christus,  but  W.  thinks  I  should  do  some- 
thing more  practical  for  the  moment.  It  is  just  possible  that  through 
Wagner  I  might  get  something  to  do  with  Liszt  in  Weimar.  Perhaps — 
but  this  is  only  an  idea  of  my  own — I  shall  make  the  suggestion  to  my 
mother  that  I  might  spend  the  summer  in  Paris,  where,  with  a  little 
help,  I  could  soon  earn  my  own  living. 

So  perhaps  we  shall  see  each  other  soon. 

Give  my  love  to  Louise,  and  thank  her  for  the  woollen  socks.  I 
don't  require  them,  as  even  in  this  pretty  cold  weather  I  am  not  freezing 
in  my  cotton  ones.     Besides,  I  am  systematically  hardening  myself. 

Your  loving, 

Hans  v.  Bulow. 


TO  HIS  FATHER. 

St.  Gall,  I7th  December  1850. 

Dearest  Father, 

For  today  only  a  couple  of  lines,  to  go  with  the  packet 
of  books  I  am  sending  you.  I  have  put  in  the  Kladderadatseh  almanack, 
which  I  bought  at  a  moment  when  I  felt  obliged  to  lighten  my  purse, 
and  which  I  now  send  for  your  amusement. 

Many  thanks  for  your  letter,  which  has  calmed  me  down,  and 
given  me  great  pleasure.  Do  not  take  my  last  one  too  much  amiss ;  I 
replied  dante  pede  to  yours,  and  was  somewhat  excited  :  it  is  not  much 
to  be  wondered  at  if  I  sometimes  see  things  as  black  as  at  other  times 
they  appear  rosy  to  me. 

I  have  as  yet  not  found  rooms.  I  am  not  a  quiet  man,  as  I  make 
music — that  was  one  stumbling-block;  the  other  was  the  high  prices.  After 
New  Year  it  will  not  be  so  hard  to  find  something.  For  the  present  we 
are  staying  at  the  Gasthaus  zum  Schwan ;  it  is  very  bad,  and  for  this 
sort  of  commercial-traveller  inn  also  very  dear;  but  the  food  is 
passable,  and  I  was  tempted  by  the  fact  that  the  innkeeper  also  lets  out 


SWITZERLAND.  63 

pianos,  so  that  I  was  able  to  get  one  at  once,  on  which  I  am  practising 
industriously  at  Liszt's  paraphrase  of  the  '  Tannhauser  '  Overture,  which 
I  am  to  play  in  Zurich  after  the  New  Year. 

On  Sunday  I  conducted  my  first  opera,  *Der  Waffenschmied  von 
Worms,'  by  Lortzing.  The  house  was  well  filled,  and  the  public  very 
responsive.  I  was  much  congratulated,  not  publicly,  but  by  all  those 
who  knew  the  circumstances,  on  the  way  in  which  I  discharged  the 
duties  of  conductor  to  an  orchestra  out  of  practice,  composed  almost 
entirely  of  amateurs,  and  never  up  to  its  full  numbers.  After  the  first 
rehearsal  I  had  almost  come  to  the  conclusion  that  there  was  nothing 
to  be  done  with  these  people,  for  it  did  not  even  go  infamously — it 
simply  did  not  go  at  all ;  so  that  I  quite  began  to  admire  myself  that 
after  three  rehearsals  I  had  got  them  so  well  in  hand  that  it  went  off 
without  a  disastrous  fiasco.  Wagner  is  right  in  saying  that  I  have  a 
great  talent  for  conducting. 

The  orchestra  was  composed  partly  of  merchants,  lawyers,  some 
officials,  and  a  couple  of  musicians  by  profession.  Herbort,  the  theatre 
manager,  a  thoroughly  honest,  friendly  man,  begged  me  most  particularly 
to  treat  these  gentlemen  with  tact.  To  the  most  rigid  strictness,  and 
energy  often  amounting  to  the  greatest  excitement,  I  yet  united  so  much 
amiable  courtesy,  that  the  gentlemen — the  best  of  the  amateurs — assured 
me  that  I  was  already  much  liked  by  them,  that  it  was  a  great  pleasure 
to  them  to  play  under  my  baton,  and  that  they  would,  as  far  as  their 
professions  allowed,  gladly  attend  all  the  rehearsals  which  I  might  think 
it  necessary  to  call.  I  have  the  greatest  hopes  from  this,  and  I  know 
that  I  possess  the  capability  of  creating  a  very  passable  opera  out  of 
almost  nothing. 

With  regard  to  the  personnel,  all  the  members  are  more  obliging 
and  more  friendly  towards  me  than  in  Zurich.  The  spectacle  is  as 
proportionately  good  as  it  was  wretched  there.  The  opera  is  certainly 
more  insignificant,  but  something  may  be  done  with  the  singers  here  if 
one  does  not  aspire  to  too  difficult  tasks.  Perhaps  also  there  vrill  be  a 
possibility  of  arranging  some  Symphony  concerts.  Trio  soirees  and  the 
like,  though  not  until  New  Year.  Until  then  the  theatre  is  closed  ;  but 
there  is  so  much  to  be  studied  that  I  don't  even  know  whether  I  shall 
be  able  to  come  to  Otlishausen  for  Christmas. 


Billow  was  not  able  to  get  to  Otlishausen  for  the  Christmas  Eve,  but  he 
paid  a  flying  visit  there  before  the  end  of  December,  on  the  last  day  of  which 
he  writes  to  his  lather  : — 

I  am  still  firmly  resolved  to  stick  here  till  Easter ;  I  shall  have  to 


64  HANS  VON  bCLOW. 

try  to  compensate  myself  for  the  miseries  of  a  conductorship  here  in 
some  other  way.  What  sort  of  animals  I  have  to  deal  with  in  my 
orchestra  it  would  pass  the  powers  of  natural  history  to  imagine.  If  one 
could  only  get  at  them  somehow,  but  they  understand  absolutely 
nothing;  I  would  gladly  learn  how  to  grunt  and  to  low  in  order  to 
accomplish  something,  but  it  would  not  help  matters.  In  the  end  there 
is  nothing  else  for  it  but  to  laugh  (that  is,  in  derision). 

Thirty -five  years  later — in  1886— on  the  occasion  of  a  Pianoforte  Recital, 
Billow  again  saw  the  scene  of  his  first  musical  winter  campaign,  and,  after  the 
end  of  the  concert,  when  he  was  enjoying  himself  with  the  musical  people  of 
the  place,  he  drew  a  lively  sketch  of  the  state  of  the  orchestra  as  it  was  when 
he  first  had  to  do  with  it.  As  so  many  important  instruments  were  taken, 
not  by  paid  and  engaged  musicians,  but  by  amateurs,  who  gladly  gave  their 
time  from  love  of  the  art,  and  who  on  that  account  had  to  be  carefully  dealt 
with,  the  young  conductor  had  to  go  through  many  an  anxious  moment  when 
he  mounted  his  desk.  To  quote  Billow's  own  account :  "  There  were  also  two 
bassoonists  in  the  orchestra — imagine,  amateurs  ! — they  were  my  dread,  and 
kept  me  constantly  on  tenterhooks.  If  they  had  nothing  to  play,  then  I  was 
in  a  state  of  terror  that  they  might  come  in,  and  I  was  constantly  warning 
them  ('not  yet ! ') ;  but  if  they  really  had  to  come  in,  then  I  had  not  the 
courage  to  give  them  the  sign — and  I  warned  them  as  before." 

An  amateur  kettledrum-player,  on  the  contrary,  who  received  honourable 
mention,  must  have  been  a  perfect  marvel  of  a  timekeeper,  for  when  he  had 
very  long  pauses  he  counted  them  inwardly,  and  used  to  pay  little  visits  to  an 
adjoining  caf6  without  endangering  the  ensemble,  as  he  always  got  back 
punctually  to  his  post  in  time  for  his  next  entry. 

Billow  also  did  not  omit  a  visit  to  the  same  cafd,  where  he  found  the  self- 
same landlady,  who,  it  is  true,  could  not  any  longer  remember  him.  The  old 
woman  begged  him  not  to  let  so  long  a  time  pass  before  his  next  visit  to  St. 
Gall,  as  he  would  not  find  her  there  if  he  did.  And  he  promised  to  come 
again  soon.  "  But  the  honoured  Master  came  not  again."  So  ends  the  account 
of  Bulow's  visit  to  St.  Gall  on  the  25th  and  26th  February  1886. 


TO  HIS  FATHER. 

St.  Gall,  5th  January  1851. 

Your  advice  to  me  to  freeze  in  the  cold,  I  am  following,  with  a 
peculiar  expansion  in  the  frosty  feeling.  Thus  I  never  have  any  fire, 
as  the  iron  stove  makes  it  so  unbearably  hot  for  an  hour  that  I  am 
obliged  to  throw  open  the  windows,  and  then  that  brings  back  the 
original  temperature.  Besides,  it  would  be  a  luxury,  as  I  only  get  up  at 
seven,  and  from  nine,  and  occasionally  ten  o'clock,  I  have  rehearsals — 


SWITZERLAND.  65 

chorus  rehearsals — which  would  drive  one  to  distraction,  if  the  ladies 
were  not  so  amiable  and  the  gentlemen  so  good-humoured.  For  we  have 
no  separate  chorus  singers,  but  all  the  personnel  of  the  play  and  of  the 
opera  is  obliged  to  take  part  in  the  choruses.  In  this  noble  occupation 
we  go  on  until  mid-day,  when  we  dine  ;  then  we  go  to  the  '  Lowe,'  drink 
our  coffee,  have  a  look  at  the  Augsburger  and  the  Steele,  regale  our- 
selves with  Charivari,  which  just  now  has  some  capital  caricatures  about 
German  affairs,  and  meet  our  friends ;  or  else  I  pay  a  call,  etc.  In  the 
afternoon  I  am  again  schoolmaster,  and  have  my  ears  martyred  from  half- 
past  two  to  half-past  four.  In  the  evening  there  is  either  orchestral 
rehearsal  or  theatre,  and  the  day  is  ended  before  one  is  aware  of  it.  If 
it  is  then  very  cold,  I  get  into  bed  and  study  scores,  which  have  the 
advantage  over  books  that  one  does  not  go  to  sleep  over  them.  I  have 
now  thoroughly  studied  the  '  Freischiitz,'  i.e.  the  score,  so  that  I  am 
learning  it  by  heart.  I  think  it  is  only  when  one  has  gone  so  far  as  to 
know  every  note,  every  nuance,  the  exact  place  and  significance  of  every 
instrument  (that  is,  in  a  good  opera),  that  one  is  fit  to  get  it  by  heart 
and  to  conduct  it,  which  one  can  only  do  when  one  does  not  have  to 
look  at  the  score  any  more.  It  is  really  a  good  thing  that  you  cannot 
come  now,  as  you  ought  to  come  in  six  days'  time. 

For  next  Friday,  with  the  help  of  God  Almighty,  the  '  Freischiitz ' 
will  be  given.  I  hope  it  will  go  pretty  well ;  I  shall  certainly  have 
three  orchestral  rehearsals.  At  length  we  have  got  a  leader,  a  young 
and  very  good  violinist  and  musician  (though  a  somewhat  coarse  and 
arrogant  man)  from  Erlangen.  His  assistance  will  make  the  thing  go 
with  more  spirit. 

With  regard  to  my  critique,  old  Greith  is  delighted  with  it,  and 
sent  it  at  once  to  his  son  in  Winterthur.  Although  he  did  not  agree 
with  the  chief  points,  yet  he  was  much  pleased  with  a  good  deal  that 
spoke  to  him  from  my  soul ;  moreover  he  is  free  from  prejudice ;  his 
eyes  sparkled  when  the  name  of  Proudhon  was  mentioned.  What  you 
say  about  extravagantly  long  phrases  is  true,  and  I  must  get  out  of 
the  habit  of  them  ;  yet  I  think  they  were  not  awkward  and  incom- 
prehensible ;  it  is  difficult  to  write  in  short,  concise  phrases  when  one 
has  to  be  circumspect,  and  to  weigh  one's  words. 

I  am  going  to  live  on  at  the  'Gasthaus  zum  Schwanen.'  The 
landlord,  a  Saxon  from  the  neighbourhood  of  '  Drasen,'  *  is  an  honest, 
reasonable  fellow.  At  New  Year  we  paid  a  biU  which,  apart  from 
lodging,  which  moreover  is  no  cheaper  in  private  houses  here,  we  found 
very  reasonable  in  every  point,  without  any  '  sticking  it  on.' 

*  Colloquial  or  local  for  '  Dresden.' 


66  HANS  VON   BULOW. 

P,S. — The  reason  I  have  written  so  large  on  the  first  page  and  so 
small  on  the  second  is  owing  to  the  cold. 

Franz  Liszt  writes  as  follows  to  Eduard  von  Billow,  in  reply  to  the  request 
from  the  latter  for  Liszt's  advice  as  to  the  most  important  steps  for  his  son's 
future : — 


LISZT  TO  EDUARD  VON  BULOW. 

EiLSEN,  ith  January  185L 

Monsieur  lb  Baron, 

I  am  too  deeply  sensible  of  the  honourable  confidence  you  place  in 
me  not  to  endeavour  seriously  to  justify  it  to  the  utmost  of  my  ability, 
both  now  and  at  any  future  time. 

In  the  career  which  your  son  has  embraced,  a  career  for  which  he 
is  evidently  remarkably  gifted,  there  are  four  points  to  be  considered. 
(Pardon  me  for  putting  it  in  this  apparently  pedantic  manner,  but  it  is 
much  the  most  clear  and  convenient) : — 

1.  The  years  of  apprenticeship  and  preparation  ;  the  opportunities 
to  be  sought  or  avoided;  the  places  to  be  accepted  or  refused, 
etc. 

2.  What  direction  should  he  follow,  and  what  sort  of  work  should 
he  undertake  1  Ought  your  son  at  once  to  set  about  writing  a  grand 
opera,  or  would  it  be  more  profitable  to  him  to  work,  either  preliminarily 
or  simultaneously,  at  some  less  ambitious  compositions — symphonies, 
quartets,  solos,  morceaux  d'ensemble,  etc.  ? 

3.  Up  to  what  point  might  he  leave  in  the  background  his  great 
talent  as  a  pianist  ?  Would  it  not  be  better  for  him  to  cultivate  that 
(after  the  example  of  Mozart,  Beethoven,  Weber,  Meyerbeer,  and 
Mendelssohn  in  their  youth),  and  to  attain  a  high  position  as  a  virtuoso, 
which — with  his  execution  and  the  verve  he  possesses — he  could  easily 
do? 

4.  What  pecuniary  results  does  he  expect  from  the  exercise  of  his 
musical  faculties  ?  Would  he  do  without  money  gains,  and  work  solely 
for  the  love  of  art  ?  What  sum  will  he  have  at  his  disposal  per  annum, 
and  for  how  many  years,  before  he  is  in  a  position  to  earn  an  honourable 
existence  by  his  art  1 

With  regard  to  the  first  point,  allow  me,  Monsieur  le  Baron,  to 
observe  that  the  harvest  your  son  will  reap  from  a  conductor's  position 
similar  to  that  which  he  now  occupies  might  be  rather  problematic  in 


SWITZERLAND.  67 

the  long  run ;  and  that,  unless  he  found  a  solid  and  somewhat  lucrative 
position,  whether  materially  or  morally,  there  would  be  every  reason  to 
advise  him  to  give  up  at  once  this  business  of  little-enviable  luxury. 
Perhaps  also  a  visit  to  Paris  and  London  might  be  desirable.  Paris  in 
particular  is  especially  adapted  for  developing,  in  an  individuality  of  so 
good  a  stamp  as  his,  what  I  may  call  a  European  sense  in  matters  of  Art ; 
and  Wagner  himself,  thoroughly  Teuton  as  he  made  himself  out  to  be 
(doubtless  with  good  reason),  will  agree,  if  he  speaks  in  good  faith,  that 
his  stay  in  Paris  has  been  eminently  useful  to  him. 

Hans  must  only  be  careful  to  choose  a  favourable  time  for  going 
there — the  time  of  the  concerts  and  dramatic  performances — that  is,  the 
six  months  of  winter  and  spring ;  and  before  he  goes  he  must  give  you 
his  word  of  honour  that  he  will  refrain  from  taking  any  part  in  politics 
during  that  time. 

It  is  very  difficult  to  give  reliable  advice  as  to  the  particular  direc- 
tion a  young  artist  ought  to  give  to  his  fancy,  and  as  to  the  mould  into 
which  it  is  best  for  him  to  adapt  his  ideas.  I  could  not  venture  any 
decision  in  this  respect,  for  it  would  go  too  near  to  overweening  conceit 
and  pedantry  ;  but,  all  the  same,  if  Hans  has  enough  confidence  in  my 
experience  and  in  my  friendship  for  him,  I  will  gladly  talk  it  over  fully 
with  him  the  next  time  he  comes  to  see  me  at  Weimar,  which  I  hope  he 
will  do  in  the  course  of  the  next  few  months.  I  may  say,  in  passing, 
that  I  entirely  agree  with  your  opinion  in  regard  to  his  project  of  an 
opera  of  Jesus  Christ !  What  theatre  would  produce  it  ?  What  actors 
would  play  it  1     And  what  public  would  accept  it  1 

The  career  of  a  German  composer  is  full  of  hindrances  and  diffi- 
culties ;  Wagner,  and  some  others  of  far  less  talent,  furnish  a  proof  of  this 
every  day.  The  very  real  interest  I  take  in  your  son  makes  me  hope 
that  circumstances  will  allow  of  my  being  serviceable  to  him.  Unfortun- 
ately at  the  moment  I  am  unable  to  offer  him  any  post  near  me,  as  you 
do  me  the  honour  to  wish ;  and  besides,  I  should  have  to  be  clearer  about 
his  ideas,  projects,  and  the  limits  of  his  ambition,  to  come  to  any  decision 
of  that  kind ;  but  as  soon  as  ever  an  occasion  arises,  be  assured  that  I 
shall  neglect  nothing  which  can  prove  to  you  the  sincerity  of  my  attach- 
ment to  your  son.  Pray  accept  this  assurance,  Monsieur  le  Baron,  to- 
gether with  that  of  the  esteem  and  consideration  of 

Yours  most  sincerely, 

F.   Liszt. 

I  shall  be  back  at  Weymar  about  the  20th  January. 

After  this  statement  Eduard  appears  to  have  been  considerably  easier  in 
his  mind,  and  to  have  seen  things  in  a  brighter  light.  On  the  19th  January 
he  writes  as  follows  : — 


68  HANS  VON  BULOW. 


EDUAKD  TO  ERNST  VON  BULOW. 

Hans  is  now,  as  you  know,  at  St.  Gall.  There  he  has  formed  an 
opera  out  of  almost  nothing.  I  was  with  him  a  week  ago,  when  he  con- 
ducted the  *  Freischlitz,'  which  he  had  studied  by  himself.  The  house 
was  full  to  overflowing,  the  applause  tremendous,  and  the  performance 
excellent.  Hans  conducted  in  every  respect  like  a  Master,  and  without 
looking  at  the  score.  The  orchestra,  some  sixty  in  number,  followed  im- 
plicitly and  with  pleasure  their  twenty-years-old  conductor.  The  most 
notable  men  of  the  place — wealthy  merchants,  professors,  doctors — play  in 
the  orchestra,  partly  for  Hans'  sake,  and  in  order  that  the  affair  may 
succeed.  Hans  is  working  almost  day  and  night.  ...  I  heard  things 
privately  about  him  from  many  sides;  the  whole  town  is  well  disposed 
towards  him  and  respects  him,  both  on  account  of  his  modesty,  lively 
disposition,  talent,  and  quiet  behaviour.  He  is  invited  to  the  first 
houses,  and  my  banker  had  already  invited  him  three  times  before  he 
knew  that  it  was  my  son.  In  a  concert  for  the  poor  that  Hans  gave, 
both  his  playing  and  his  compositions  met  with  enormous  success. 

....  Let  me  disabuse  your  mind  of  one  other  error :  you,  as  a 
good  Prussian,  will  naturally  have  been  anxious,  like  myself,  lest  Hans 
should  be  through  and  through  republicanised  by  Wagner,  and  brought  up 
an  arch-traitor.  Therefore  I  give  you  my  word  of  honour  that  Hans  was 
only  bitten  by  the  political  mania  whilst  he  was  wavering  between  two  pro- 
fessions, as  he  was  in  Berlin.  Once  fixed  in  his  true  calling,  as  he  is 
now,  and  he  thinks  and  dreams  of  nothing  else  but  music 

Hans  has  chosen  his  career,  Tiot  lightly,  but  after  severe  struggles 
with  himself,  and  therefore  has  not  acted  wrong  towards  anybody.  I,  as 
his  father,  with  whom  he  also  broke  off,  say  this.  Hans  will  do  all  in 
his  power  to  obtain  a  reconciliation  with  his  mother,  and  I  assure  you  of 
his  deep  grief  over  his  present  misunderstanding  with  her. 


TO   HIS   SISTEE. 

St.  Gall,  26th  January  1851. 
My  Dear  Good  Sister, 

You  may  be  sure  your  loving  wishes  for  my  unhappy 
birthday  were  not  necessary  to  make  me  think  of  you.  I  am  not 
estranged  from  you,  and  shall  as  little  alienate  myself  from  you  as  from 


SWrrZEBLAND.  69 

my  mother,  in  spite  of  her  having  discarded  me  and  ceased  to  be  a  mother 
to  me.  I  shall  hail  with  joy,  with  a  thousand  joys,  the  day  when  I  can 
be  allowed  to  give  both  a  sign  of  my  love  and  my  gratitude,  but  the 
impossible  must  not  be  expected  of  me.  I  shall  not  have  a  long  life,  and 
therefore  I  wish  so  to  live  that  life  shall  appear  worth  living.  I  will  not 
be  bound  down  to  circumstances  which  seem  to  me  more  hostile  and  de- 
testable than  the  most  bitter  death,  which  I  should  greet  as  a  friend  in 
comparison.  A  drawing-room  musician  I  cannot  and  may  not  be  without 
doing  violence  to  myself ;  the  vocation  to  which  Heaven,  and  my  own 
desire,  lead  me  is  that  of  a  dramatic  composer ;  and,  as  one  must  also  have 
the  means  of  earning  one's  livelihood,  I  think  it  is  wisest  to  educate  my- 
self for  a  theatre  conductor,  because,  with  my  capability  for  it,  I  shall  be 
able  to  get  a  sure  and  solid  position  as  such.  That  is  why  I  could  never 
dream  of  repenting  the  step  I  have  taken. 

Now  look  here  !  Today  I  will  indulge  my  inclinations  by  telling 
you  everything,  by  pouring  out  my  heart  to  you,  and  I  think  you  need 
not  think  less  of  yourself  because  I  do  so. 

You,  too,  know  the  respect  and  love  which  I  have  long  felt  for 
Wagner.  I  do  not  know  if  you  can  understand  it,  but  it  is  through 
this  respect,  which  necessitates  also  an  understanding  of  his  works,  that 
I  really  came  to  my  right  self.  I  have  become  more  and  more  conscious 
that  this  esteem,  this  understanding,  is  the  best  germ  in  me,  the  one  by 
means  of  which,  if  properly  fostered  by  me,  I  shall  become  a  man  who 
fills  a  distinct  place  in  the  world,  and  in  humanity.  For  among  thou- 
sands who  exercise  the  same  activity — to  my  thinking,  not  merely  useless 
but  even  injurious — running  about  as  a  lawyer  or  a  drawing-room 
musician,  /  could  never  be  inspired  by  such  an  idea,  which  would  give 
me  no  pleasure — no  interest  in  my  profession.  For  this  I  "was  and  am 
too  aristocratic — too  exclusive.  According  to  my  ideas,  every  man  ought 
to  deserve  his  existence,  and  to  show  his  fellow-men  that  he  has  a  right 
to  exist,  and  that  he  does  not  risk  stealing  away  from  more  worthy  ones 
the  enjoyment  of  the  earth. 

Now  you  cannot  blame  me  if,  with  all  respect  for  the  domestic 
virtues  of  W.,  E.,  and  P.,  for  example,  I  consider  it  highly  unnecessary 
and  quite  a  luxury  for  them  to  exist.  The  fact  that  I  have  recognised, 
as  perhaps  few  others  have  yet  done,  the  greatest  artist  who  has  appeared 
in  our  age,  and  who  will  perhaps  have  a  still  higher  historical  importance, 
has  awaked  in  me  ambition,  self-confidence,  and  the  spring  of  life.  It 
became  clear  to  me  that  I  was  able  to  share  the  spirit  of  this  man,  that  I 
was  able  to  become  his  pupil,  his  apostle ;  and  with  such  an  endeavour, 
such  an  aim  as  this  before  me,  life  appeared  to  me  worthy  of  living.  For 
him  I  felt  an  enthusiasm  such  as  I  had  never  felt  before  j  and  the 


70  HANS  VON   BULOW. 

musical  talent,  the  fineness  as  well  as  weakness  of  whicli  (for  I  am  under 
no  illusions)  I  perhaps  owe  to  my  mother,  had  fitted  me  to  love  and 
to  honour  him,  I  had  always  wanted  to  be  a  musician,  but  a 
morbid  want  of  self-confidence  had  kept  me  from  seriously  opposing  the 
doubts  and  contrary  wishes  of  my  mother.  I  thought  my  life  was 
spoilt ;  I  was  full  of  deep  dissatisfaction  with  myself  and  vegetated  au 
jour  le  jour.  Then  began  those  unlucky  politics  ;  as  a  man  of  feeling 
and  intelligence  I  could  not  get  away  from  my  inward  revolt,  and  that 
day  on  which  I  did  not  go  with  them  to  Dresden  still  seems  to  me 
the  most  ignominious  of  my  life.  I  often  think  how  much  better  it 
would  have  been  if  I  had  followed  the  insignificant,  but  at  that  time 
noble  and  effective,  calling  of  loading  the  cannon  ! 

The  career  on  which  I  have  fixed  by  the  judgment  of  Wagner, 
whom  I  had  indeed  long  regarded  as  a  competent  judge  in  the  matter, 
this  career  I  earnestly  wished  to  carry  out  under  the  guidance  of  his 
hand,  until  I  had  attained  my  mental  majority.  I  could  not  follow 
after  him  at  a  distance  ;  I  have  so  much  to  learn  from  him ;  he  stands 
80  high,  I  comparatively  so  low — it  seemed  to  me  absolutely  indispen- 
sable for  the  attainment  of  my  life's  aim.  He  has  been  so  fine,  so 
noble,  so  fatherly  towards  me  that  I  owe  him  eternal  gratitude  for  it  all. 
All  the  more  am  I  grieved  at  the  behaviour  of  my  mother  towards  him, 
especially  as  I  was  intending  to  sacrifice  myself  to  her  wishes — for  I 
cannot  bear  this  disunion  any  longer  (believe  me,  it  has  cost  me  many 
tearful  hours) — by  leaving  Wagner  at  Easter,  and  either  going  to 
Weimar  to  study  with  Liszt,  or  else  to  Paris,  though  I  recollect  that 
Liszt  most  particularly  recommended  the  winter  season  for  Paris. 

My  father  has  to  some  extent  supported  me  in  this  project — I 
fancy  from  various  motives.  In  any  case  the  separation  from  Wagner 
can  never  be  more  than  a  temporary  one.     I  cannot  do  otherwise. 

If  mother  will  allow  me  to  write  to  her,  I  shall  do  so. 

Papa  came  here  lately  for  the  '  Freischiitz,'  and  was  excessively 
pleased.  I  was  not  with  him  for  Christmas  Eve.  I  had  one  sole 
pleasure  on  that  evening ;  the  previous  Sunday  I  had  played  in  the 
theatre  ;  a  charity  concert  had  been  arranged  under  my  management ;  I 
had  had  works  studied,  such  as  the  sextet  from  *  Don  Juan,'  also  a 
portion  of  Wagner's  '  Rienzi,'  which  they  had  at  first  said  were  impossi- 
bilities. It  was  a  very  good  concert.  My  piano-playing  had  an 
immense  success,  and  I  was  called  forwards  over  and  over  again.  The 
following  Wednesday  I  received  a  laurel  wreath  tied  with  satin  ribbons, 
on  which  were  embroidered  my  name  and  a  verse  from  Schiller.  I  can't 
yet  learn  from  whom  it  came.  .  .  . 

But  now  I  must  close.     Do  all  you  can  to  make  things  right  again 


SWITZERLAND.  71 

between  mother  and  me.      Today  I  have  not  asked  yon  a  word  about 
yourself  and  your  doings. 

On  the  19th  February  he  writes  to  his  father  : — 

Herbort  is  always  courteous  to  me,  although  to  others  he  is 
sometimes  a  Brutus  in  the  accusative ;  certainly  that  redounds  to  his 
credit,  or  rather  the  contrary  to  his  prejudice.  His  interest  requires  him 
to  keep  me  for  his  establishment,  as  I  am  of  use  to  him,  and  to  a  certain 
extent  help  to  bring  credit  on  it.  Last  month  I  was  very  unwell,  with  a 
very  bad  cough  and  pain  in  my  chest,  and  complete  hoarseness.  Dr. 
Diethelm  met  me  again  for  the  first  time  at  the  '  Lowe '  after  a  long 
interval.  I  often  see  Fraulein  Dardenne,  and  when  my  cold  was  at  its 
worst  she  knitted  me  a  first-rate  shawl,  which  has  been  tremendously 
useful  to  me  ever  since.  Next  Tuesday  week  I  play  the  '  Tannhauser ' 
Overture  at  the  subscription  concert  in  Zurich;  Wagner  conducts  the 
'  Sinfonia  Eroica.'  .  .  . 


TO  HIS  FATHER. 

St.  Gall,  Ind  April  1851. 

Dear  Father, 

For  the  last  ten  days  I  have  had  to  work  like  a 
dozen  niggers.  Ten  hours^  rehearsal  daily;  I  am  perfectly  ruined,  and 
going  to  the  dogs.  The  first  thing  I  shall  do  when  I  have  a  free 
afternoon  will  be  to  take  an  emetic  to  get  rid  of  all  the  gall  and  vexation 
which  have  accumulated  within  me.  I  used  to  behave  in  a  courteous 
manner,  and  have  now  to  become  classically  rude — a  new  lesson  in  the 
school  of  life  !  For  my  benefit  Herbort  has,  after  many  inquiries,  given 
me  the  second  performance  of '  Czaar  und  Zimmermann.'  That  will  bring 
in  poor  receipts — a  couple  of  wretched  gulden  perhaps  !  ^Nevertheless, 
if  I  have  to  fag  so,  I  will  at  least  have  something  for  it.  My  benefit 
will  take  place  next  Tuesday,  i.e.,  the  8^^  April. 

After  we  have  been  having  holiday  for  ever  so  long  it  suddenly 
occurs  to  the  Director  to  give  operas  ofi'hand,  and  to  have  such  a  heap 
of  rehearsals  that  today  everyone  is  pretty  hoarse  for  the  performance. 
Friday  we  are  to  have  opera  again,  ditto  Sunday,  Tuesday,  "Wednesday, 
and  Friday  in  next  week.  You  can  just  imagine  how  things  are  going 
when  everything  is  pressed  on  so,  almost  without  the  proper  means,  and 
now,  in  addition  to  that,  operas  which  it  is  a  perfect  folly  to  give  here 
such  as  Flotow's  *  Martha.' 


72  HANS  VON   BtJLOW. 

Next  Tuesday,  then,  I  shall  expect  you  for  certain  ;  am  delighted 
to  think  of  seeing  you. 

My  March  salary  of  40  gulden  Herbort  still  owes  me.  Tomorrow 
I  shall  send  my  landlord  for  it.  The  fellow  will  have  to  pay  in  any 
case,  for  he  stays  the  summer  here  and  keeps  a  hotel,  and  no  one  who  is 
known  to  be  insolvent  dare  do  that. 

Tomorrow  evening  Wagner  is  coming  to  see  us  for  a  couple  of 
days.  I  shall  hardly  have  time  to  see  him.  On  Saturday  Ritter  leaves, 
and  goes  to  Freiburg  (University),  where  Feuerbach  this  summer  is  to 
read  about  Classical  Art ;  Ritter  intends  also  to  compose  his  '  Frithjof,'  the 
poem  of  which  is  ready. 

As  the  last  drop  in  the  cup,  this  morning  comes  an  artist  with  an 
introduction  to  me,  a  clever  violinist  and  very  agreeable  man,  Gulomy  (a 
Russian),  a  friend  of  Lipinski.  The  Munich  pianist  Speidel,*  an  old 
acquaintance  of  Stuttgart  days  (perhaps  you  may  remember  him),  intro- 
duced him  to  me.  How  ever  does  he  know  that  I  am  living  here? 
Now  I  shall  have  to  give  myself  up  to  the  man,  which  however  I 
would  do  with  pleasure  if  there  were  plenty  of  time. 

My  head  is  all  in  a  buzz.  Today  is  '  Czaar  und  Zimmermann.'  It 
must  go  well.  If  Gulomy  gives  a  concert  on  Monday,  then  you'll  come 
that  day,  as  I  should  probably  play ;  but  I  will  write  about  it  before 
then.  Isa's  letter  herewith.  The  letter  from  the  Berlin  friend  has 
pleased  me  greatly.  Tell  me,  how  did  you  get  it  1  Where  had  he  found 
out  that  I  am  vegetating  here  ? 

Farewell !  my  head  is  buzzing,  my  head  is  buzzing — bz,  bz,  bz,  bz  ! 

The  above-mentioned  concert  took  place,  and  he  writes  to  hia  father  on 
the  16th  April  :— 

What  pleases  me  is  that  I  am  universally  respected  by  the  public, 
with  whom,  however,  I  have  otherwise  nothing  to  do ;  they  liave  never 
blamed  me  for  any  ill-luck  in  performances. 

Just  lately  (on  Monday)  I  played  Beethoven's  great  A  minor 
Sonata  with  Gulomy  the  violinist,  a  very  clever  artist,  and  made  a 
furore  with  it.  On  Palm  Sunday  he  gives  a  second  concert,  in  which  I 
shall  also  take  part.  On  that  Monday  I  could  scarcely  find  time  to  dress 
myself  and  get  to  the  place,  and  directly  I  had  finished  I  had  to  rush 
from  the  piano  to  the  orchestral  rehearsal. 


*  Wilhelm  Speidel  (1826),   a  pianoforte   teacher,  virtuoso,   and  composer  ;   a 
friend  of  Liszt,  Thalberg,  and  Schumann. 


SWITZEKLAND.  78 

TO   HIS   MOTHEK. 

Otlishadsen,  30/^  April  1851. 

Dearest  Mother, 

The  deep  need  my  heart  feels  that  the  sad  and  unnatural 
relation  should  be  removed  ■which,  through  my  wrong,  has  been  subsist- 
ing for  half  a  year  between  mother  and  son,  led  me  to  ask  my  sister 
whether,  after  your  indignation  at  the  bitter  mortification  I  had  caused 
you,  you  would  allow  me  to  write  to  you  again.  Isidore's  answer  was 
favourable  :  she  said  I  might,  and  I  was  to  write  to  you  again.  The  hard 
work  which  took  up  all  my  time  in  St.  Gall,  to  enable  me  to  earn  my 
livelihood,  and  the  bodily  and  mental  fatigue  induced  by  it,  and,  let  me 
also  confess,  an  unchildlike  defiance,  now  vanished,  which  refused  to 
acknowledge  any  wrong  towards  you,  and  which  was  strengthened  by 
the  certainty  that  I  could  make  my  way  as  a  musician  in  Switzerland 
(even  if  with  difficulty),  without  thinking  that  it  was  you  I  had  to  thank 
for  my  talent,  my  education  in  music  ; — all  this  kept  me  from  fulfilling 
my  sister's  wish  sooner,  as  I  had  really  in  my  innermost  self  wished 
to  do. 

But  none  the  less  strong  was  the  longing  which  I  felt,  after  the  relaxing 
of  the  unhappy  state  of  tension  between  us,  which,  besides  the  misery  it 
brought  me,  seems  also  like  a  bad  augury  for  my  future  in  the  career  which 
I  chose  with  such  an  inconsiderate  disregard  of  all  duties  towards  you,  and 
in  which  I  closed  every  road  of  return.  Of  melancholy  hours,  in  which 
I  was  conscious  of  my  loneliness  and  my  almost  orphaned  condition, 
there  were  many :  my  birthday,  Christmas, — seasons  which  we  had 
always  spent  together  for  twenty  years,  and  which  I  this  time  spent 
as  far  apart  from  you  in  spirit  as  we  were  separated  in  distance — these 
anniversaries  made  me  doubly  feel  the  need  of  a  reconciliation.  What 
kept  me  from  taking  any  steps  on  my  side  was  the  uncertainty  whether 
your  anger  against  your  disobedient  son,  whom  you  had  driven  out  of 
your  heart,  would  allow  you  to  read  my  letter.  Later  on,  it  was  the 
reasons  I  have  already  given  you  which  prevented  me  from  seeking  this 
reconciliation.  I  am  doing  this  now  from  Otlishausen,  where  I  have 
come  to  recruit  after  having  finished  my  duties  as  conductor  at  the 
St.  Gall  theatre,  to  restore  my  health,  to  practise — which  I  have  had 
rather  to  neglect  during  the  winter — and  to  devote  myself  to  some  big 
compositions.  You  know  my  old  dislike  of  great  show  and  demonstra- 
tion— therefore  let  me  just  say  in  simple  words,  I  am  deeply  sorry  to  have 
grieved  you  in  the  icay  I  have  done.  I  cannot  yet  tell,  as  the  future  alone 
can  answer  this,  whether  I  have  done  wrong  towards  myself  by  the  way 


74  HANS  VON  ByLOW. 

I  have  acteJ,  but  I  readily  acknowledge  to  you  that  I  have  acted  wrongly 
towards  you,  ungratefully,  and  contrary  to  my  duty.  The  grief  I  have 
caused  you  I  heartily  repent,  and  implore  you  to  forgive  me. 

With  this  hope  within  me,  I  think  it  is  now  my  duty  to  give  you 
at  least  an  idea  of  what  my  life  has  been,  and  to  tell  you  of  my  practical 
education  in  the  career  of  a  musical  conductor.  Whatever  may  be  the 
final  judgment  as  to  the  step  which  I  took  in  flying  to  Zurich,  thus 
much  I  can  truly  affirm,  that  the  half-year  from  October  1850  to  April 
1851  was  not  only  not  useless  in  the  way  it  was  spent,  but  that  it  has 
been  a  gain  for  me  in  every  respect,  in  knowledge  and  experience.  On 
the  whole,  the  thought  of  being  now  devoted  to  one  object,  the  reconcil- 
ing of  freedom  and  necessity  in  the  choice  of  a  career,  the  ending  of  the 
vacillation  between  the  profession  to  which  I  was  pledged  and  that  which 
I  desired,  has  matured  me  ;  and  one  result  of  this  is  that  I  have  stripped 
off  all  dilettanteism,  the  consciousness  of  which  often  formerly  embittered 
the  pleasure  of  my  talent — a  talent  which  I  know  I  possess.  This  is 
also  evident  in  my  piano-playing,  although  this  has  been  pushed  rather 
more  into  the  background ;  I  have  gained  in  certainty  and  in  precision 
of  tempo,  and  have  lost,  or  at  any  rate  begun  to  lose,  that  restless, 
inartistic  haste,  for  which  I  have  so  often  been  found  fault  with.  The 
frequent  piano  rehearsals  for  solos  and  chorus  (for  they  had  no  special 
chorus  director  at  St.  Gall)  have  been  of  great  use  to  me  in  this  — 
in  knowledge  of  the  parts,  vocal  parts  especially :  I  have  learnt  to 
express  myself,  to  make  myself  intelligible,  if  my  musical  feeling  told  me 
that  such  and  such  a  thing  was  wanting  in  taste,  and  how  it  should  be 
rendered.  I  have  become  very  keen  and  sure  in  regard  to  sounds,  for,  as 
I  had  to  teach  difficult  choruses  to  people,  some  of  whom,  though  other- 
wise educated,  could  hardly  read  their  notes,  I  was  also  obliged  to  sing 
with  them  and  to  them,  which  cultivated  my  ear  still  more,  and  which 
also  enabled  me  to  sing  correctly  at  sight,  even  the  middle  parts,  a  thing 
one  can't  do  without  practice.  The  conducting  of  the  orchestra  has 
been  of  still  greater  use  to  me,  especially  in  such  a  poor-conditioned  one 
as  that  at  St,  Gall,  which  consists  mainly  of  amateurs;  the  routine  in 
the  mechanism  of  time-beating,  circumspection  in  reading  the  score — to 
say  nothing  of  playing  it  and  understanding  it  at  sight — the  art  of  get- 
ting the  orchestra  in  time  again  when  it  has  got  out,  the  knowledge  of 
the  instruments  and  the  instrumentation,  quality  of  sound,  etc,  I  am 
now  in  a  position  to  teach  quite  a  strange  orchestra  my  own  compositions, 
for  instance ;  even  very  important  composers  (Meyerbeer,  Schumann, 
and  others)  cannot  do  this  unless  they  have  learnt  the  mechanical  part 
early.  Of  operas  I  have  studied,  since  I  have  been  in  St.  Gall, 
'  Freischiitz,' '  Martha,' '  Stradella,'  'Nachtlager,' '  Czaar,' '  Waffenschmied,' 


SWITZERLAND.  75 

and  the  *  Daughter  of  the  Regiment '  (to  say  nothing  of  operettas),  and 
have  frequently  made  possible  the  impossible,  a  fact  which  has  met 
with  acknowledgment. 

There  I  was  far  away  from  Wagner,  whom  you  look  upon  as  my 
ruin.  Our  correspondence  was  unimportant,  and  when  he  came  on  a 
visit  to  St,  Gall  I  was  so  busy  that  I  hardly  had  a  couple  of  hours  with 
him.  I  had  at  that  time  to  work  on  an  average  ten  hours  a  day.  Since 
the  beginning  of  December,  when  I  left  Zurich,  I  have  only  been  once 
at  Wagner's,  and  that  was  on  the  24th  and  25th  February,  for  a  subscrip- 
tion concert,  at  which  I  played  the  Liszt  paraphrase  of  the  '  Tannhauser ' 
Overture  successfully. 

Think  what  you  will  of  Wagner,  but  at  any  rate  do  not  disregard  the 
distinction  between  the  artist  and  the  man.  No  one  can  now  say  a  word 
against  his  merits  as  an  artist ;  otherwise  would  Liszt,  one  of  the  most 
gifted  and  remarkable  of  artists,  have  relinquished,  in  his  riper  years, 
everything  which  tended  to  his  own  ambition  and  the  success  of  which  was 
certain,  because  he  thought  it  more  noble  to  make  propaganda  for  Wagner 
and  his  works,  and  entirely  to  subordinate  himself  to  this  aim  1  If  I  am 
mistaken  in  W.,  a  later  insight  will  reveal  it  to  me.  But  musically  I  am 
greatly  indebted  to  him,  from  Zurich  onwards.  You  cannot  deny  that,  as 
I  have  become  a  musician,  this  practical  work  has  given  me  experience 
and  knowledge,  has  taken  me  considerably  onwards  in  my  career,  and  has 
at  any  rate  the  material  advantage  of  providing  me  with  a  livelihood,  as 
the  profession  of  a  conductor  will  ensure  me  this  for  the  future — good 
conductors  not  being  innumerable,  and  I  having  a  special  aptitude  for  it. 
Circumstances  could  not  have  been  more  favourable  for  learning  this — 
that  is  to  say,  more  adapted  than  in  Zurich  and  St.  Gall ;  for  one  learns 
more  from  a  bad  orchestra  than  from  a  good  one. 

As  regards  my  plans  for  the  future — first  of  all,  I  shall  stay  here 
some  three  weeks  longer,  and  then  go  to  Weimar,  where  Liszt,  as  he 
lately  wrote  to  Wagner,  will  take  me  as  his  pupil,  and  where  I  shall  try 
to  perfect  myself  in  composition  and  piano  playing.  No  doubt  Liszt's 
influence  will  be  able  to  recommend  me  later  to  some  town  or  other. 

I  should  so  like  to  hear  from  you  again — how  you  are  living,  whether 
you  are  well,  and  how  you  feel  towards  me.  Please  let  Isidore  write  to 
me  about  this.  Once  more — I  beg  pardon  from  my  whole  heart  for  the 
wrong  I  did  towards  you. 

Your  loving,  grateful  son. 


76  HA.NS  VON  BULOW. 

TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Otlishausen,  lUh  May  1851. 

Dearest  Mother, 

It  has  given  me  the  greatest  joy  that  you  have  answered 
my  letter  yourself,  and  have  thus  shown  me  that  you  did  not  give  me  up 
on  account  of  my  disobedience,  and  that  you  have  not  taken  your  love 
from  me ;  and  I  thank  you  from  my  heart  for  this.  You  give  me  this 
assurance  at  the  end  of  your  letter,  because  you  foresee  that  I  should 
miss  the  old  warmth  of  your  letters.  It  is  true  I  do  miss  it  sorely,  but 
I  also  understand  that  you  can  only  be  reconciled  to  me  by  degrees,  for 
somewhat  of  "  forgetting  "  must  also  go  with  "  forgiving."  If  I  only  have 
the  hope  that  the  old  relation  between  mother  and  son  may  be  restored 
in  the  course  of  time,  and  that  you  won't  shut  your  heart  against  me  on 
purpose — that  you  won't  thrust  away  the  feeling  of  reconciliation  !  How 
much  the  wrong  I  did  you  by  my  mode  of  action,  which  so  deeply  shat- 
tered our  feelings  for  one  another,  and  in  a  way  I  had  never  imagined — 
how  this  has  troubled  me  I  told  you  in  my  first  letter :  here  I  can  only 
repeat  it,  and  you  need  not  doubt  the  sincerity  with  which  I  beg  your 
pardon.  Be  assured  of  this,  that,  wherever  it  is  possible,  I  shall  be 
guided  by  your  wishes  in  the  carrying  on  of  my  career.  I  shall  in  any 
case  not  stay  beyond  the  end  of  this  month  in  Otlishausen,  and  I  should 
like  then  to  know  whether  you  approve  of  my  going  to  Weimar,  and  asking 
Liszt  if  he  can  help  me  by  his  recommendations  to  a  post  as  conductor, 
or  anything  else.  I  should  be  glad  to  hear  from  you  soon  about  this, 
and  beg  that  you  will  write  to  me,  as  I  am  almost  afraid  you  won't  like 
the  idea  of  a  conductorship,  which  would  certainly  be  the  surest  way  of 
earning  a  livelihood. 

This  brings  me  to  the  mention  of  Ernst's  letter.  "  You  placed  before 
me,"  wrote  Ernst  to  me,  "as  a  special  condition  of  your  reconciliation,  the 
following  of  a  solid  musical  career."  I  only  beg  you  to  tell  me  more  exactly 
what  sort  of  a  career  j'ou  have  in  your  mind,  and  what  you  consider 
most  advantageous  for  my  further  education.  For  I  cannot  believe 
that  I  have  grown  to  be  such  a  stranger  and  so  indifferent  to  you  that 
you  just  coldly  wish  me  success,  and  that  my  decision  to  become  a 
musician,  with  which  you  appeared  satisfied  half  a  year  ago,  as  you 
assured  me  you  would  not  constrain  me  in  my  choice  of  a  profession 
— I  cannot  think  that  this  decision  can  be  so  utterly  contrary  to  you  at 
heart  that  you  would  reject  every  explanation  as  quite  indifi'erent  to  you. 
For  was  it  not  you  who  so  often  rejoiced  over  my  talent,  and  urged  it 
on,  and  even  brought  it  forward  as  the  noblest  in  me,  when  you  were 
vexed  with  my  conduct  or  opinions  in  other  things  ? 


SWITZEKLANI).  77 

Therefore  do  be  kind  enough  to  fulfil  my  request.  It  is  of  such 
great  consBquence  to  me  to  know  your  decision,  because  I  must  be  ready 
to  order  all  my  future  life  accordingly.  That  is  why  I  send  these  lines 
so  quickly  after  receiving  your  letter.  You  yourself  expressed  the  wish 
to  hear  from  me  soon. 

About  my  health  I  beg  you  to  trouble  yourself  as  little  as  possible. 
I  have  never  been  a  robust  man,  nor  accustomed  to  live  without  physical 
ailments.  In  the  summer  I  shall  have  to  go  to  one  of  the  baths  some- 
where. 

I  must  certainly  take  up  my  piano-practice  again  seriously,  for,  even 
if  my  fingers  have  not  got  stiff,  I  have  no  repertoire,  and  that  is  most 
necessary,  whether  for  public  playing  or  for  teaching.  I  hope  really  before 
long  to  learn  a  dozen  Beethoven  Sonatas  by  heart.  And  I  am  not  aufait 
in  new  things,  modern  music,  as  there  was  no  music-shop  in  St.  Gall,  and 
I  was  not  able  to  get  new  music  from  Winterthur,  where  there  is  a  great 
deal  of  musical  life  and  classical  taste ;  all  this  I  will  now  retrieve.  As 
regards  composition  I  shall  also  have  to  yield  to  circumstances,  and  pro- 
bably first  to  write  pieces  that  will  sell.  Existence  and  consistency  to 
one's  convictions  occasionally  contradict  one  another.  But  I  shall  not 
lose  courage ;  God  forbid  ! 

Farewell,  dearest  mother  :  try  to  love  me  again. 

EDUARD  TO  ERNST  VON  BULOW. 

[May  1851.] 

Hans  has  been  with  us  for  the  last  four  weeks,  well  and  bright,  for 
a  rest  after  his  veritable  musical  campaign  in  St.  Gall.  His  labours  there 
have  ended  with  honour.  He  has  gone  through  a  schooling  such  as  no 
other  young  musician  of  his  age  would  easily  do,  and  is  now  in  a  position 
to  conduct  any  orchestra.  He  is  just  now  composing  a  string  Quartet, 
and  intends  after  that  to  compose  a  Symphony  to  Aeschylus'  '  Oresteia,' 
which  he  is  studying  in  the  original  for  that  purpose.  In  a  fortnight 
he  goes  to  Munich,  and  thence  to  Liszt  at  Weimar,  with  whom  he  is  to 
live. 

Thus  young  Biilow  started  for  his  new  destination,  Weimar,  which,  in  the 
person  of  the  honoured  Master  to  whose  guidance  he  now  gave  himself  up, 
contained  all  his  hopes  for  the  future.  In  spite  of  his  apparent  cheerfulness 
and  freedom  from  care,  which  he  knew  how  to  assume,  a  great  earnestness  lay 
in  the  depths  of  his  soul. 

He  writes  to  his  sister  before  his  departure  from  Otlishausen  : — 

How  my  future  will  shape  itself  is  all  in  the  dark.     After  all,  the 


78  HANS  VON  BULOW. 

words  of  your  book-marker  remain  to  me:  "Aide-toi,  le  ciel  t'aidera." 
And  not  heaven  alone,  but  all  its  storms  and  tempests  too.  Happy  the 
time  when  one  still  wishes  them  near,  until — and  that  is  also  a  blessing 
— one  is  struck  down  by  the  lightning  in  the  strength  of  one's  youth.  A 
certain  humour  will  remain  to  me,  and  it  is  not  mingled  with  bitterness, 
thank  God ! 


WEIMAR 


CHAPTER  VI. 

WEIMAR. 

BDMMER  1851 — WINTER  1853. 

TO  HIS  FATHER. 

Weimar,  \ltli  June  1851. 
Dearest  Father, 

I  have  now  been  about  a  week  in  Weimar,  but  have  not 
written  to  you,  because  I  had  not  yet  got  things  into  order.  Houses  for 
people  like  me,  i.e.  furnished  rooms,  were  not  to  be  had,  so  I  was  obliged 
to  stay  at  the  hotel,  until  at  last,  through  Rafi's  persuasion,  I  took  up  my 
quarters  in  Liszt's  house  on  the  Altenburg.  There,  in  the  second  storey 
of  the  adjoining  building,  I  have  four  beautiful  rooms  at  my  disposal, 
but  content  myself  with  two — properly  speaking,  with  one — in  which, 
close  to  my  bed,  stands  a  very  fair  piano.  Liszt  himself  is  away,  gone 
to  Eilsen  in  Biickeburg,  where  Princess  Wittgenstein  is  lying  very  ill. 
When  I  arrived  here  Liszt  was  expected  back  at  the  beginning  of  July ; 
but  the  latest  tidings  are  different,  and  Liszt  has  had  all  his  clothes  sent 
on  to  Eilsen,  a  proof  that  we  must  not  expect  him  back  yet  awhile.  He 
has  been  informed  of  my  arrival,  and  of  my  taking  up  my  quarters  in  his 
house,  and  has  written  fully  about  me  to  Raff,  who  at  present  fills  his 
place  towards  me.  Liszt's  plan  is  that  I  should  first  of  all  prepare 
myself  for  the  career  of  a  virtuoso ;  and,  as  it  is  very  desirable  that  I 
should  speedily  be  able  to  earn  for  myself,  I  shall  probably,  after  a  couple 
of  months'  requisite  practice  here,  go  to  some  of  the  neighbouring  towns 
and  smaller  Courts  in  order  to  make  my  public  appearance  as  a  pianist, 
and  indeed  as  a  pupil  of  Liszt.  So,  for  the  present,  I  agree  to  do  this, 
and  renounce  any  will  of  my  own,  in  order  to  give  myself  up  to  "  the 
school  of  the  4cole  de  Weimar,"  as  Liszt  writes  to  Raff.  I  have  already 
begun,  and  practise  eight  to  ten  hours  a  day.     Thus  I  have  in  these  few 

F 


82  HANS  VON  BULOW. 

days  drummed  into  myself  a  tremendously  difficult  Trio  of  RatFs,  one  with 
which  even  Liszt  had  to  take  no  end  of  trouble,  and  tomorrow  evening  I 
shall  play  it  before  a  small  audience  on  Liszt's  good  piano  with  Joachim 
and  Cossmann — I  have  never  yet  had  two  such  capital  players  to  play 
with.  Amongst  the  audience  will  be  the  democrats,  Professor  Stahr 
and  Fanny  Lewald,  who  have  both  taken  up  their  abode  here  for  a  long 
time,  and  who,  in  spite  of  their  diflerent  opinions,  visit  a  good  deal  at  the 
Court.  I  am  extremely  delighted  that  people  are  so  democratic  here,  as 
one  will  not  be  obliged  to  parade  one's  opinions,  because  they  are  quite 
without  danger,  and  therefore  without  merit,  and  people  don't  get  in  a 
rage  and  excite  themselves  for  nothing. 

With  regard  to  composition,  I  am  especially  to  learn  to  write  some 
pieces  for  my  own  instrument  and  for  my  own  cajmbilities,  i.e.  full  of  in- 
dividual difficulties,  designed  for  me  specially.  I  have  not  yet  been  able 
to  write  a  piano  piece  really  suitable  for  the  piano;  and  Raff  says  that  is  just 
the  reason  I  must  learn  to  do  it  here.  "Well,  as  I  said,  I  have  given  up  my 
self-government  for  the  present,  and  am  letting  myself  be  be-Weimared  : 
but  naturally  I  shall  keep  enough  of  my  "  ego  "  left  to  be  able  to  judge  of 
the  experiments  which  are  being  tried  on  me.  I  also  want  very  much  to 
be  able  to  speak  with  Liszt  personally,  but  just  at  present  that  is  impos- 
sible ;  for  Liszt,  away  with  his  sick  Princess  and  his  head  full  of  other 
things,  is  not  in  a  mood  to  trouble  himself  with  outside  affairs,  and  one 
would  gain  nothing  by  writing.  But  to  continue  about  what  I  began  to 
say.  The  string  Quartet  I  began  at  Otlishausen  I  am  now  finishing,  and 
it  will  then  be  played.  And  then,  after  I  have  thoroughly  studied  the 
pieces  I  now  have  in  hand,  I  shall  begin  Liszt's  first  pianoforte  Concerto 
(still  in  manuscript),  and  when  there  is  an  opportunity  of  an  orchestral 
rehearsal  I  shall  try  it  with  them :  Liszt  has  not  yet  played  it  here 
himself. 

Now  you  see,  dear  father,  what  I  am  doing  and  working  at  at  the 
present  moment.  I  get  up  about  six  o'clock,  and  sit  down  to  the  piano  in 
a  very  neglige,  apparel  (the  popular  costume  of  the  future),  and  set  to  work 
at  my  hammering  with  a  calm  and  peaceful  soul.  Liszt's  cook  makes  my 
breakfast  in  duo  form — I  think  it  won't  be  too  dear ;  Liszt's  valet  cleans 
my  boots  and  my  clothes.  Till  one  o'clock  I  stay  at  home ;  Raff  comes 
to  me  every  morning  for  half  an  hour  to  see  how  I  am  getting  on ;  as 
yet  he  has  only  spoken  favourably  of  my  compositions.  At  half-past  one 
I  dine  at  the  '  Erbprinz ' ;  this  one  must  do,  so  as  to  be  seen  in  good 
society  in  Weimar,  and  to  get  to  know  other  musicians,  singers,  etc. 
After  dinner  I  kill  time  by  taking  a  walk  for  a  couple  of  hours.  Towards 
four  o'clock  I  generally  go  back  to  my  hole  again,  and  work  till  near  nine, 
when  I  go  to  supper  in  the  town.     By  half-past  ten  I  am  usually  back  at 


WEIMAR.  83 

home  again,  ami  extemporise  on  the  piano  by  moonlight  or  otherwise — it 
makes  no  difference.  As  there  is  no  second  house-key,  I  have  to  climb  up 
into  the  courtyard  over  a  tumbledown  wall,  and  to  get  into  the  house 
through  a  window  which  I  can  open  from  outside. 

I  shall  probably  continue  living  in  the  way  I  am  doing  now.  I 
shall  not  go  to  see  Frau  von  X.,  because  there  is  no  good  in  doing  so ; 
and  if  one  wants  to  kill  time,  if  the  utile  is  wanting,  there  must  at 
least  be  the  dulce.  I  have  got  to  know  Stahr  and  the  Lewald.  The 
former  asked  after  you,  and  spoke  of  your  earlier  novel,  and  of  the  classic 
novel  of  the  fat  sculptor.  Did  not  you  once  tell  me  that  Stahr  wrote 
a  good  critique  on  your  writings?  He  has  been  writing  lately  about 
Wagner's  '  Lohengrin,'  and  since  then  he  has  also  corresponded  with  him, 
I  like  to  listen  to  him,  for  he  talks  very  sensibly,  and  no  '  young-German,' 
but  like  a  man.  But  whether  he  is  a  great  light  I  can't  yet  say.  Joachim, 
who  often  looked  at  me  rather  askance  in  Leipzig,  is  very  pleasant  to  me 
here — in  short,  it  does  me  no  end  of  good  to  be  amongst  my  own  sort 
again,  who  value  me  as  far  as  I  deserve  it.  I  cannot  tell  you  how  that 
everlasting  knowing  that  one  was  undervalued  has  embittered  me  and  then 
made  me  flag. 

I  have  not  yet  been  to  the  theatre ;  on  the  28th  is  '  Tannhauser'  (a 
free  performance),  and  very  soon,  i.e.  before  that,  'Don  Juan.'  Herr 
Moritz  is  here  with  his  wife,  nee  Rockel ;  she  is  starring  it  here,  and  as 
she  is  liked  she  will  probably  get  a  permanent  engagement. 

Raff  hopes  to  obtain  the  post  of  Secretary  to  the  Goethe  Institution, 
or  to  the  Musical  Department  of  the  Library,  and  to  draw  a  small  salary. 

Now  I  must  go  back  a  long  way,  and  tell  you  about  my  journey. 

So  first  Munich  :  I  stayed  there  six  days  and  looked  about  me,  and, 
with  the  exception  of  some  tedious  hours,  I  enjoyed  myself. 

After  describing  the  sights  of  Munich,  he  continues  : — 

He  [Dingelstedt]  wants  to  bring  out  '  Tannhauser '  next  winter,  but 
Kapellmeister  Lachner*  will  oppose  this,  who  cares  for  none  but  the 
classics  (with  the  exception  of  himself).  Altogether  they  are  twenty  to 
thirty  years  behindhand  in  musical  matters  here  ;  whereas,  in  the  north, 
people  are  already  beginning  to  sift  the  works  of  Mendelssohn  and 
Schumann,  and  to  give  them  their  acknowledged  place.  They  have  not 
got  so  far  in  Munich  as  even  to  know  them  in  a  superficial  manner. 
Plenty  of  old  fogeyism,  but  on  the  whole  very  little  musical  feeling ;  the 


*  Franz  Lachner  (1803-90).     From  1836  Hofkapellmeister  [Court  conductor],  and 
from  1852-68  General  Director  of  Music  in  Munich,  composer,  master  of  counterpoint. 


84  HANS  VON   BiJLOW. 

music-shops  are  in  a  fearful  condition,  Speidel,  himself  a  bit  of  a  fogey, 
is,  properly  speaking,  the  only  pianist :  he  gives  four  to  five  hours'  lessons 
a  day,  has  earned  a  little  capital,  and  in  the  winter  goes  to  Paris,  there 
to  profit  his  soul  a  little.  Then  I  could  really  very  well  take  up  Ihe 
orphaned  pianos  and  amateurs  there,  and  find  something  else  to  do  when 
Speidel  comes  hack  again.  I  am  curious  to  know  what  Liszt  will  say  to 
such  a  thing !  I  am  quite  in  favour  of  it,  and  think  it  would  be  practi- 
cable, and  I  should  not  set  myself  up  in  opposition  to  Speidel.  This  is 
the  result  of  my  visit  to  Munich.  In  my  hotel  I  met  five  Englishwomen 
from  Stuttgart,  and  gave  them  ample  opportunity  of  misusing  the  French 
language.  At  a  piano  shop  I  played  to  Speidel  and  other  young  artists, 
a  violoncellist  Goltermann,  and  others,  and  thus  put  myself  in  a  proper 
position  of  respect. 

As  regards  the  route  of  my  journey,  that  by  Coburg  is  the  shorter, 
if  not  also  the  pleasanter.  I  stayed  the  night  in  Nuremberg,  which 
seemed  to  me  the  best  plan  ;  but  of  this  another  time. 

For  today  farewell,  best  father;  keep  me  up  in  the  Otlishausen 
news,  even  if  the  most  historic  fact  is  the  purchase  of  a  goat. 


TO  FRANZ  LISZT. 

Weymar,  29</i  June  1851. 

My  Dear  and  Illustrious  Master, 

I  should  have  taken  the  liberty  of  writing  to  you  long 
ago,  if  I  had  not  thought  that  your  time  was  too  full  of  sad  preoccupa- 
tions just  now,  and  this,  consequently,  an  ill-chosen  moment  to  speak  to  you 
of  my  personal  affairs.  Nevertheless  I  should  not  have  delayed  express- 
ing my  lively  gratitude  for  the  generous  hospitality  which  Mr.  Raff  has 
offered  me  in  your  name,  if  I  had  not  felt  the  almost  certainty,  or  at 
least  the  hope — so  ardently  shared  by  all  your  friends  in  Weymar — of 
your  speedy  return,  a  hope  which  has  fallen  through  for  the  moment,  to 
my  great  regret. 

I  was  far  from  expecting  the  gracious  reception  you  have  given  me 
in  your  letter,  which  gives  me  the  opportunity  of  explaining  frankly  my 
situation,  and  the  intention  with  which  I  have  come  to  "Weymar. 

It  is  a  feeling  of  absolute  confidence,  both  in  your  superiority  and 
experience  as  an  artist,  and  in  your  former  kindnesses  to  me,  which  has 
brought  me  here ;  I  have  come  to  beg  you  to  judge  of  my  musical  powers, 
and  to  advise  me  as  to  the  best  career  for  me  in  which  to  develop  them, 
and  thus  to  secure  for  myself  a  more  or  less  honourable  position  in 
the  artistic  world, 


WEIMAR.  85 

This  resolution,  which  met  with  the  entire  approbation  of  my 
parents  on  the  one  side,  and,  on  the  other,  of  our  mutual  friend,  Mr.  R. 
Wagner,  whose  help  I  enjoyed  last  winter,  and  towards  whom  I  feel 
many  obligations,  was  not  however  followed  by  any  fixed  plan  on  the 
subject  of  my  future  career.  I  repeat,  I  have  come  here  to  place  my 
fate  unreservedly  in  your  hands,  and  to  proceed  in  the  direction  that  you 
may  advise,  without  obtruding  any  preference  or  decisive  sympathy  for 
one  branch  of  a  musician's  career  over  another.  I  am  only  too  happy  to 
have  shaken  off  the  yoke  of  a  profession  which  was  repugnant  to  me  for 
a  thousand  and  one  reasons,  and  from  which  I  cannot  regret  having  with- 
drawn myself,  except  for  the  bluntness  which  I  then  considered  indis- 
pensable towards  my  mother,  so  worthy  of  my  filial  respect ;  and  there- 
fore I  do  not  mind  what  road  you  may  map  out  for  me.  I  am  resolved 
to  devote  myself  with  all  possible  ardour  to  whatever  career  you  may 
deem  suitable,  as  I  place  my  whole  confidence  in  the  clearness  of  your 
judgment. 

I  want,  moreover,  to  profit  by  all  the  advantages  which  the  town  of 
Weymar,  made  illustrious  by  its  modern  hero,  can  offer  to  a  disciple  of 
art,  and  I  hope  to  be  able  to  stay  here  till  I  have  in  some  measure 
attained  my  object — either  by  the  help  of  my  mother,  to  whom  I  do 
not  despair  of  reconciling  myself  entirely,  or  else  by  earning  the  means 
by  my  own  activity.  For — to  omit  nothing  in  this  confession  which 
might  have  a  special  influence  on  my  future  destiny — my  father  is  not 
in  a  position  to  help  me  with  his  own  fortune. 

This,  in  few  words,  is  my  present  position.  Whilst  awaiting  your 
return  I  will  still  take  advantage  of  your  hospitable  kindness  by  culti- 
vating my  piano-playing  at  the  Altenburg,  neglected  in  Switzerland 
for  the  business  of  conductor  at  poor  theatres,  an  occupation  which, 
although  it  has  not  been  altogether  useless  for  me,  would  not  suit  me 
again  in  similar  circumstances. 

Last  night  I  heard  *  Tannhauser.'  0  how  we  missed  your  magic 
wand,  the  breath  of  life,  the  soul  of  this  inanimate  body  ! 

Whilst  begging  you  to  continue  to  me  your  valuable  protection,  of 
which  you  have  given  me  fresh  proofs,  pray  accept  the  respect  and  grati- 
tude of 

Yours  most  sincerely, 

Hans  db  Bulow. 

In  a  long  letter  to  his  father  on  the  6th  July  he  writes  : — 

I  have  been  corresponding  with  Liszt  for  some  time.  He  first  of 
all  welcomed  me  by  letter,  and  invited  me  to  live  at  the  Altenburg,  and 


86  HANS  VON  BULOW. 

to  consider  myself  at  home  there.  His  plan  is  as  follows  :  he  wishes  me 
to  remain  a  year  in  Weimar,  and  to  drum  into  my  brains,  principally, 
the  newer  works  of  his  own,  the  bigger  Sonatas  of  Beethoven,  the  best  of 
Chopin,  Schumann — in  short,  to  make  such  a  repertoire  for  myself  as  not 
every  pianist,  or  indeed  no  pianist,  can  show  ;  besides  this,  I  am  to  study 
instrumentation  and  that  kind  of  thing,  and  am  specially  to  learn  to 
write  for  the  piano  myself.  He  thinks  it  is  necessary  for  me  to  have  a 
Hartel  grand  piano  (a  new  one)  from  Leipzig,  as  the  instrument  I  now 
have  is  worth  nothing.  In  short,  Liszt  thinks  the  days  of  real  virtuosity 
are  not  over,  and  he  considers  that  I  shall  be  capable  of  earning  my 
livelihood  by  concert-tours  as  his  pupil  and  successor,  for  he  himself  has 
entirely  given  up  public  playing.  For  this  I  should  require,  provisionally, 
help  (pecuniary)  only  until  January  '52.  By  that  time  I  shall  make  my 
appearance  as  a  pianist  in  the  neighbourhood,  first  at  the  Court  here, 
then  at  the  Courts  round  about,  at  Erfurt,  at  the  subscription  concerts 
in  Leipzig,  etc.  Finally,  in  the  winter  of  '52-'53  I  am  to  make  my  first 
concert-tour,  possibly  in  company  with  Joachim,  who  is  about  my  age, 
and  first  of  all  in  Paris.  He  is  peremptory  against  Munich  for  next 
winter ;  he  says  I  should  learn  nothing  there,  should  not  progress,  and 
should  waste  my  powers. 

My  mother  seems  to  be  fairly  well  pleased  with  Liszt's  plans;  at 
any  rate  she  has  a  great  opinion  of  Liszt's  penetration  and  experience. 
She  also  wrote,  in  a  recent  letter  to  EaflF  (to  whom  I  am  most  grateful  for 
his  intervention  in  the  matter),  that  she  would  provide  me  with  the 
necessary  assistance  in  my  career. 

I  am  anxious  to  hear  your  opinion  about  Liszt's  plan  for  me ;  I  do 
hope  that  you  will  approve  of  what  I  am  doing.  I  will  not  leave  fallow 
the  executive  skill  which  I  have  already,  not  without  labour  and  pains, 
attained.  That  the  epoch  of  Virtuosi  is  not  over — of  this  one  has  proofs 
every  day,  and  I  intend  to  do  my  very  uttermost.  Meanwhile  Liszt's 
personal  presence  here  is  not  absolutely  indispensable  to  me — he  does  not 
return  till  the  beginning  of  August — I  have  enough  to  go  on  with  without 
him.  With  regard  to  the  '  Oresteia,'  I  saw  to  my  dismay  on  nearer  inspec- 
tion that  I  do  not  yet  understand  enough  of  instrumentation.  I  am 
doing  instrumentation  at  present  as  practice.  The  first  movement  is 
however  fully  sketched  out.  For  the  rest,  I  am  collecting  and  putting  in 
order  my  earlier  compositions,  so  that  I  may  be  able  to  make  some  use  of 
them  as  opportunity  offers ;  a  '  Phantasiestiick '  for  piano  and  violin  will 
be  ready  shortly ;  to  write  a  good  pianoforte  movement  is  a  thing  I  have 
first  to  learn ;  I  cannot  do  it  yet.     For  then  the  "Ego  "  would  be  created. 

Saturday  week  was  '  Tannhauser,'  unfortunately  not  under  Liszt's 
conducting ;  it  was  commanded  in  celebration  of  the  marriage  of  Princess 


WEIMAR.  87 

Auguste  of  Wiirtemberg  to  Prince  Hermann,  the  cousin  of  the  present 
Grand  Duke.  The  performance  was  very  good.  The  public  applauded 
firstly  the  entrance  of  the  grandees,  who  came  punctually  to  the  theatre 
and  remained  till  the  last  note,  and  then  also  every  single  number  of  the 
opera  with  great  enthusiasm.  '  Tannhauser '  is  so  popular  here  with  all 
classes,  more  so  than  any  other  opera  except  '  Freischlitz.'  Although 
Wagner  has  no  melody  at  all,  according  to  some  people,  yet  one  hears 
them  whistled  all  over  the  streets.  That  was  a  tremendous  pleasure  for 
me !  Now  the  theatres  are  closed  till  the  beginning  of  September.  The 
seal  of  the  packet  for  Tieck  was  spoiled,  and  I  had  to  seal  it  afresh. 
Many  thanks  for  the  Allemannian  poems ;  the  copy  for  Isa  is  going  off 
tomorrow. 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Wbimab,  Uh  September  1851. 
Dearest  Mother, 

My  heartiest  wishes  for  your  birthday !  I  could  wish, 
for  your  sake,  that  it  were  over  for  this  year,  for  I  hope  by  this  time 
next  year  another  sort  of  a  congratulator  will  present  himself  to  you,  who 
will  be  able  to  give  you  more  satisfaction  by  some  little  success.  I 
believe  you  when  you  say  that  you  cannot  yet  have  any  real  confidence 
in  my  present  choice  of  a  profession ;  an  unfinished,  "going-to-be  "  sort  of 
man  does  not  inspire  confidence,  and,  although  I  cannot  alter  it,  it  often 
makes  me  angry  that  I  am  placed  in  a  position  in  which  I  can  at  most 
lay  claim  to  the  title  of  "  hopeful " — that  is  to  say,  not  entirely  hopeless. 
Happily  the  time  for  my  patron  Liszt's  return  is  drawing  near,  so  that 
there  will  soon  be  an  opportunity  of  seeing  how  things  will  turn  out. 
This  news  will  ease  your  mind,  as  much  as  to  me  it  is  welcome  news. 
Liszt  has  already  started  some  time  ago,  and  the  day  after  tomorrow,  or 
else  the  day  after  that,  the  musical  Grand  Duke  will  arrive  for  certain. 
Then  your  son's  history  will  begin  to  be  somewhat  more  interesting  than 
it  has  been  up  to  now,  when  1  really  have  not  much  to  say  about  him. 
As  a  pianist  I  must  have  support  and  guidance ;  it  is  high  time  for  this, 
and,  as  the  most  important  thing  in  my  immediate  future  is  to  cultivate 
my  powers  as  a  Virtuoso,  this  must  be  the  central  point  of  all  my  en- 
deavours, towards  which  I  must  brace  myself  up  to  special  efforts.  In 
making  these  efforts  I  see,  however,  that  I  must  not  overlook  due  care 
for  my  health.  I  have  observed,  namely,  that  my  chest  always  suffers  if 
I  do  an  unreasonable  amount  of  practice,  such  as  Litolff  would  have,  if 
you  remember  :  and  yet  practice,  as  Wieck  understands  it,  cannot  in  so 


88  HANS  VON  BULOW. 

short  a  time  lead  to  the  result  which  is  at  stake.  Well,  I  follow  the 
golden  middle  course,  and  as  I  lead  a  very  regular  life,  and  almost  always 
get  home  ahout  nine  o'clock,  and  shall  be  able  to  continue  doing  so  through 
the  winter,  in  spite  of  Liszt  bringing  a  Hungarian  guest,  Czertaheli,  back 
with  him,  I  shall  not  come  to  any  bodily  harm.  Strange  to  say,  I  have 
discovered  that  music  sometimes  works  upon  my  nerves — I  who  used  to 
boast  of  my  hardiness  in  this  respect.  If  I  throw  the  blame  of  this  on- 
to the  enervation  of  the  modern  musical  ear  in  general — a  fact  to  which 
I  mean  to  give  special  study  soon — yet  I  have  observed  that  it  is  Liszt's 
compositions  especially  which  affect  my  nerves  most  if  I  go  on  practising 
them  long,  a  weakness  which  I  must  get  over,  although  even  Raff,  the 
musical  architect,  shares  it  in  many  points. 

Raff  and  Joachim  continue  to  be  my  only  company.  I  am  delighted 
to  see  that  they  think  something  of  me,  and  seem  to  like  to  have  me  with 
them.  In  the  domain  of  learning  [erudition]  Raff  is  looking  after  me, 
and  willingly  serves  as  my  Mentor,  to  teach  me  all  that  is  worthy  of 
knowing,  and  I  see  more  and  more  that  all  this  is  necessary  for  the 
musician  of  to-day.  No  one  can  do  this  better  than  Raff,  who  is  himself 
just  now  deep  in  the  sphere  of  fore-classical  antiquity,  busy  witli  the 
poem  for  his  '  Samson.' 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

[Weimar,  1851.] 

Dearest  Mother, 

I  had  already  written  to  you  this  morning  early,  and 
with  my  letter  in  my  pocket  I  went  up  to  the  '  Erbprinz,'  where  Raff  gave 
me  yours  which  had  arrived  meanwhile.  I  won't  keep  you  waiting  for 
an  answer  to  that,  the  more  so  as  there  are  things  in  it  which  I  must 
frequently  repeat — so  please  excuse  the  rhapsodical  postscript,  which  I 
add  at  Raff's  house  directly  after  leaving  the  table. 


One  point  which  requires  a  speedy  answer  is  that  about  the  so- 
called  '  journalistic '  business.  I  have  not  offered  myself  as  a  correspon- 
dent to  the  Signale;  Raff  begged  me  to  undertake  it  for  him  if  I  did  not 
mind.     For  the  present  I  shall  not  do  this. 

On  the  other  hand,  I  shall  write  for  Brendel's  paper  (but  for  no 
other),  first,  because  the  paper  has  a  dignified,  well-principled,  erudite 
attitude ;  secondly,  because  it  ensures  the  interests  which  Wagner  and 


WEIMAK.  89 

Liszt  have  in  common,  and  because  there  are  few  people  who  can  write 
well  and  sensibly ;  thirdly,  because  as  an  artist  I  shall  belong  to  the 
public,  against  which,  moreover,  I  can't  write  the  word  "  unfortunately." 

It  is  my  dearest  wish  to  pay  the  utmost  possible  regard  to  your 
desires,  and  to  sacrifice  to  them  any  private  wishes  of  my  own,  where  I 
possibly  can  do  so.  But  you  will  agree  that,  in  my  immediate  future,  I 
must  not  allow  a  plurality  of  authority  to  step  in  and  settle  things  for 
me ;  nor  do  I  specially  like  the  principle  of  authority ;  but  there  is  one 
authority  that  I  shall  for  the  present  recognise  and  respect,  and  that  is 
Liszt's,  and  no  one  else's. 

My  oicn  individuality  ivill  not  be  lost,  it  remains  in  God's  care ;  but 
for  the  present  the  only  right  thing  for  me  to  do  is  to  tack  myself  firmly 
on  to  Liszt,  and  detach  myself  from  anybody  else. 

I  am  dreadfully  sorry  that  you  cannot  feel  the  same  confidence  in 
Liszt  which  I  feel,  for  if  you  did  it  would  reassure  you  to  know  that  I 
shall  do  nothing  without  his  advice  or  against  his  will.  My  working  on 
one  musical  paper,  which  I  may  make  serviceable  to  him  through  my 
own  personality  in  several  ways,  can  only  be  agreeable  to  him,  and 
I  most  earnestly  beg  that  you  will  believe  that  I  am  old  enough  to  go  to 
work  circumspectly  and  rationally  in  my  affairs. 

You  may  be  sure  (I  promise  you  this  afresh)  it  shall  be  my  earnest 
endeavour  to  regard  your  wishes  about  me  as  far  as  possible.  I  avnnot 
do  more,  and  cannot  help  it  if  I  fail  to  carry  out  the  ideas  you  have  had 
for  me.  The  lapse  of  years,  the  peculiar  course  of  my  education,  all 
these  lie  in  the  way ;  I  can't  help  it  any  more  than  I  can  make  my  outer 
appearance  more  pleasant  or  more  important. 

Please  forgive  the  haste  in  which  I  have  written. 

Your  grateful,  affectionate  son. 

TO  HIS  FATHER. 

Weimar,  Ind  October  [1851]. 
Dbarbst  Father, 

I  have  today  received  a  third  letter  from  you,  and  confess 
that  I  am  quite  ashamed  never  to  have  responded  until  now  to  these  proofs 
of  your  fatherly  friendship  and  sympathy.  You  will  have  guessed  the 
reason  of  my  silence ;  I  wanted  to  wait  until  Liszt  had  returned,  so  as  to 
be  able  to  write  to  you,  as  you  have  a  right  to  expect,  with  some  certainty 
about  my  future  plans.  This,  for  me,  most  important  event  has  up  to 
now  been  announced  from  week  to  week,  but  has  not  taken  place,  and 


90  HANS  VON  BiJLOW. 

unfortunately  my  patience  has  to  undergo  a  still  longer  trial,  till  the  end 
of  next  month. 


Nothing  is  changed  in  ray  mode  of  life  and  the  work  I  am  doing, 
and  things  are  going  on  as  quietly  and  simply  as  heretofore.  The  greater 
part  of  my  time  is  devoted  to  piano-playing ;  I  have  enough  to  do  to 
perfect  my  technique,  as  it  is  now  a  settled  thing  that  my  immediate 
career  is  to  depend  upon  my  executive  talent.  Together  with  this,  I  have 
written  some  new  one-  and  two-part  songs,  with  a  view  of  perhaps  pub- 
lishing them  pretty  soon.  Therefore  I  cannot  think  of  the  '  Oresteia  ' 
any  more  for  the  moment,  but  the  grand  subject  will  certainly  incite  me 
again  at  a  more  favourable  time ;  I  have,  moreover,  written  out  a  few 
sketches  or  ideas  for  it.  For  practice  in  style,  in  which  I  fully  acknow- 
ledge the  principal  faults  you  point  out,  and  for  other,  personal  reasons,  I 
am  the  correspondent  from  here  of  two  musical  papers  in  Leipzig  (the  two 
which  are  most  read,  the  Signale  and  the  Neue  Zeitschrift  filr  Musik), 
and  send  in  also  articles  of  other  kinds — just  lately  a  rather  long  reply 
to  a  Grenzhote  critique  of  Kichard  Wagner's ;  in  a  couple  of  days  will 
follow  a  treatise  on  a  rational  performance  of  '  Don  Juan,'  one  suitable 
to  the  demands  of  modern  opera.     This  I  am  not  doing  for  money. 

I  also  lately  found  another  subject  for  an  opera,  on  which  I  have  at 
once  set  to  work.  It  is  '  Merlin,'  and  it  was  Fr.  Schlegel's  '  Romantic 
Poems  of  the  Middle  Ages '  that  led  me  to  it.  I  will  write  more  fully 
about  it  when  I  have  got  the  thing  clear  in  my  own  mind;  I  find 
it  rather  difficult  to  exclude  from  the  subject  all  miraculous  elements. 
When  the  sketch  is  ready  I  will  send  it  to  you,  and  please  give  me  your 
opinion  about  it. 

I  have  written  such  a  lot  about  myself  that  I  have  only  just  remem- 
bered my  duty,  namely,  to  let  you  know  about  mamma's  visit.  This  was 
how  it  came  about.  I  had  not  written  for  a  long  time,  thinking  that 
mamma  was  still  embittered  against  me,  and  therefore  I  did  not  know 
what  to  do.  So,  in  order  to  know  something  about  me  for  certain,  she  at 
last  came  here.  She  spoke  to  Raff  first,  before  I  knew  she  had  arrived. 
I  then  found  her  pretty  calm ;  she  was  quite  disposed  to  be  reconciled 
to  me,  and  the  past  was  hardly  mentioned.  Although,  as  she  says,  she 
cannot  yet  feel  any  confidence  in  my  choice  of  a  profession,  yet  she  has 
several  times  helped  me  up  to  now.  So  my  old  relation  to  mamma  is 
pretty  nearly  restored. 


WEIMAR.  91 

TO   HIS   MOTHER. 

Weimar,  15th  October  1851. 

Dearest  Mother, 

Today  I  have  to  announce  to  you  the  long-delayed, 
joyful  tidings  that  my  protector  and  master  Liszt  arrived  at  length  last 
Sunday  evening  in  good  liealth.  I  was  at  the  station  both  morning  and 
noon  to  await  his  arrival ;  but  the  servants,  who  were  sent  on  in  advance, 
said  he  would  not  come  till  the  last  train,  at  ten  o'clock.  So  I  went 
quite  unconcernedly  to  hear  '  Cortez ' — music  so  full  of  power  and 
nobility,  like  a  steel  bath  to  be-Flotow'd  ears.  There  he  appeared 
suddenly  and  unexpectedly  a  few  yards  before  me  in  the  stalls,  as  though 
he  had  sprung  from  the  earth  by  magic;  a  whisper  ran  through  the 
whole  house  and  reached  the  orchestra,  which  during  his  absence  had 
run  wild  and  gone  to  sleep — in  their  terror  they  played  twice  as  badly, 
and  Liszt  got  in  a  rage,  and  would  have  liked  to  seize  the  sceptre  from 
his  humdrum  deputy,  and  to  have  made  an  end  to  the  easy-going 
Philistine-anarchy  by  the  despotism  of  his  own  conducting-genius,  had 
his  scruples  allowed  it ;  and  as  they  did  not  allow  it  some  one  else  got 
in  a  rage  also,  and  that  was  myself. 

Liszt  silently  welcomed  me,  and  eased  his  mind  by  pouring  out 
some  of  his  ill-humour  in  my  ear.  After  the  theatre  I  had  supper  with 
him,  together  with  Joachim.  The  Princess  looked  very  ill,  but  strange 
to  say  has  already  got  wonderfully  better  in  these  few  days.  She  still 
possesses  her  admirable  eloquence  and  art  of  disputation;  I  doubt  if 
there  ever  was  a  woman  of  such  astonishing  knowledge  and  such  quick 
and  penetrating  intelligence.  I  shall  probably  now  be  promoted  to  the  office 
of  house-disputator,  as  I  am  more  accustomed  to  French  than  Raff.  .  .  . 

Yesterday  evening  I  was  again  alone  at  the  supper,  and  went  on 
with  a  discussion  with  the  Princess  right  into  the  night ;  I  could  not 
break  off,  but  the  wearied  Liszt  at  length  spared  me  the  misery  of 
deciding  between  the  two-fold  dictates  of  courtesy.  I  played  a  couple  of 
pieces  to  him,  in  which  the  principal  things  he  found  fault  with  were  a 
Avant  of  the  necessary  precision  and  decision  in  rhythm,  and  of  a  certain 
aplomb,  in  which,  owing  to  my  anxiety  at  the  moment,  I  was  more  than 
usually  deficient.  The  first  pieces  I  am  to  study  with  him  next  week 
are,  a  Scherzo  of  Chopin,  a  Liszt-Schubert  paraphrase,  and  Liszt's 
transcription  of  the  Wedding  March  from  the  '  Midsummer  Night's 
Dream.' 

I  must  now  hire  a  grand  piano  stiff  enough  to  be  of  use  to 
my  studies;  it  will  cost  4  reichsthaler  a  month  on  hire.      Liszt   has 


92  HANS  VON  BULOW. 

again  explained  to  me  what  are  his  views  with  regard  to  my  future 
career.  .  .  . 

He  thinks  now  that  he  shall  in  any  case  spend  the  winter  here, 
and,  as  the  new  theatre  management  is  making  polite  advances  to  him, 
it  seems  as  though  he  would  be  very  much  occupied  for  Art-life  here. 

Of  my  Doctorate  work  I  am  also  thinking  ;  I  hope  to  be  clear 
about  it  in  a  year.  It  will  be  a  big  work,  for  there  is  a  great  deal  in  it, 
and  it  requires  deep  study. 


I  have  a  lot  of  other  letters  to  write  today  —  to  XJhlig,  Franz, 
Brendel,  etc.  So  farewell  for  today,  dear  mother,  with  the  exclamation 
"  Lonfc  live  Liszt !  " 


TO   HIS   FATHER. 

Weimar,  2bth  October  1851. 
Dbabest  Father, 

I  ought  to  have  told  you  a  week  ago  the  gospel  of  the 
happy  arrival  of  Liszt,  so  impatiently  awaited  on  all  sides,  but  especially 
by  me ;  but  the  very  fact  of  his  arrival  has  made  me  so  busy  that  I  have 
never  had  a  quiet  moment  till  now  to  write  to  you.  Outwardly,  Liszt's 
return  has  indeed  made  but  little  change  in  my  very  simple,  customary 
life  in  Weimar,  for  I  am  enjoying  his  hospitality  as  before  in  the  matter 
of  rooms,  breakfast,  and  service,  things  which  I  can  really  accept  without 
scruple  in  such  a  large  household  with  so  many  empty  rooms ;  but  my 
labours  have  greatly  increased.  To  the  most  important  matters  first.  In 
his  first  conversation  with  me,  which  took  place  the  day  after  his  return, 
he  recapitulated  to  me  again  what  I  have  already  written  to  you.  .  .  . 
He  considers  that  music-conducting,  in  circumstances  such  as  those 
which  I  have  already  experienced — and  while  I  am  so  young  I  shall 
certainly  not  find  any  better — is  a  very  unsuitable  means  for  rising  in 
my  profession ;  that  it  very  seldom  happens  that  a  man  is  promoted 
from  an  insignificant  to  a  distinguished  position  ;  and  hat,  in  order  to 
be  able  to  lay  claim  to  such  an  one,  I  must  first  put  myself  into  the 
position  of  being  perfectly  well  able  to  do  without  it,  and  standing  inde- 
pendently on  my  own  merits,  which  it  would  not  be  difficult  for  me 
as  a  Virtuoso  to  attain.  Well,  when  I  had  gone  through  my  piano 
examination  with  him,  in  which  I  very  much  pleased  him  by  a  rather 
happy  performance  of  one  of  his  most  difficult  piano  pieces,  this  was 
pretty  much  the  judgment  that  he  passed  upon  me :   he  says  he  places 


WEIMAR.  93 

positive,  well-grounded  hopes  on  me ;  and  more  than  hopes  indeed  (he 
has  desired  me  also  to  write  and  tell  you  this),  for  he  says  I  shall,  now 
that  he  has  once  for  all  retired  from  public  playing,  be  able  to  take  up 
again  the  position  of  a  Virtuoso  where  he  has  left  it.  Eight  months  with 
him  will  be  amply  sufficient  for  my  preparation — granted,  of  course,  the 
necessary  industry  on  my  side ;  then  I  am  to  make  my  debut  perhaps  in 
Berlin,  or,  better  still,  in  Vienna,  and  go  thence  to  Paris  and  London. 
Within  three  years  I  shall  have  attained  my  object — that  is,  an  assured 
independence ;  I  may  consider  him  as  surety  for  this. 

I  on  my  side,  in  my  inexperience,  not  only  require  to  seek  the  sup- 
port of  an  authority  like  Liszt,  to  attach  myself  closely  to  him  and 
strictly  to  follow  his  advice,  but  I  also  have  such  great  confidence  in  his 
knowledge  of  the  world  and  mankind  that,  without  being  afraid  of  the 
'^jurare  in  verba  magistri"  I  have  made  him  unconditionally  the  arbiter 
of  my  fate,  and  have  told  him  so.  So  I  now  devote  the  greater  part  of 
my  time,  four  to  five  hours  daily,  exclusively  to  the  cultivation  of  my 
technique ;  I  martyrise  the  eventual  founders  of  my  material  prosperity ; 
I  crucify,  like  a  good  Christ,  the  flesh  of  my  fingers,  in  order  to  make 
them  obedient,  submissive  machines  to  the  mind,  as  a  pianist  must  It 
is  also  quite  right,  and  for  the  simplest  reasons  very  delightful  to  me  too, 
to  be  able  to  do  something  for  him  in  return  for  the  great  kindness  he 
shows  me — he  gives  me  regular  lessons.  So  I  am  now  making  a  copy  of 
his  excellent  arrangement  of  Beethoven's  Ninth  Symphony  for  two 
pianos,  which  he  has  also  promised  to  play  with  me  sometime ;  it  is 
certainly  a  laborious  and  minute  piece  of  work,  but  meanwhile  it  teaches 
me  the  score  by  heart ;  I  am  also  translating  his  '  Tannhauser '  article  (of 
the  same  length  as  the  one  on  '  Lohengrin')  for  the  Illustrirte  Zeitung. 
I  also  occasionally  act  as  his  secretary — but  this  is  a  secret.  At  the 
beginning  of  next  year  Liszt  will  introduce  me  at  Court,  where  I  shall 
iu  all  probability  play. 

If  possible  I  shall  do  my  Doctorate's  work  before  my  first  concert- 
tour.     The  subject  is — '  The  History  of  the  Belief  in  Immortality.' 
Liszt  was  40  three  days  ago. 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Weymar,  2l8t  November  185L 
My  Dearest  Mother, 

The  letter  you  have  just  written  to  me  after  your  long 
silence  has  made  me  very  sad,  for  it  proves  pretty  clearly  to  me  that  the 


94  HANS   VON   BiJLOW. 

events  of  the  past  year  have  greatly  shaken,  if  not  enfeebled,  your  love 
and  your  motherly  indulgence — a  fact  which  I  liked  to  think  was  not  so. 

You  were  more  prompt  formerly  to  forgive  me  a  hasty  word  spoken 
in  an  unhappy  moment  of  wounded  pride,  and  you  were  not  wrong  in 
thinking,  as  I  suppose  you  did,  that  sooner  or  later  I  should  be  the  first 
to  repent  sincerely.  Do  not,  I  pray,  have  a  worse  opinion  of  my 
character  today,  the  principal  defect  of  which  is  perhaps  an  extreme 
irritability,  an  innate  fault,  stronger  sometimes  than  my  will  itself,  and 
of  which  I  have  not  been  able  yet  entirely  to  cure  myself.  That  is  why 
I  have  been  extremely  sensitive  to  the  heartrending  doubt  you  cast  on 
my  sincerity. 

Don't  you  remember  too  the  definition  which  our  mutual  friend 
Litolff  gave  of  my  character  in  this  respect  ?  "  He  hates  all  kind  of 
demonstration  and  display." 

Nothing  is  truer,  you  may  be  sure  of  that,  and  if  I  make  an 
exception  it  is  because  my  heart  is  in  it ;  and  I  protest  strongly  against 
the  accusation  that  I  have  no  heart.  I  have  been  very  unhappy  about 
it,  and  it  has  been  on  my  mind  for  many  days.  As  you  and  I  have  the 
same  tastes  in  many  things,  so  it  is  with  our  affections.  Remember  how 
many  a  time  a  sharp  and  unkind  letter  has  remained  on  your  mind  for 
whole  weeks,  and  made  you  incapable  of  every  more  tender  feeling. 
Well,  I  share  this  sensibility,  though  in  a  lesser  degree.  The  thought 
that  anyone  I  love,  who  is  writing  to  me,  is  ill-disposed  towards  me  and 
bears  me  a  grudge,  makes  me  miserable  and  uneasj'.  I  assure  you  that 
your  letter  has  made  my  various  work,  with  which  at  the  moment  I  am 
overdone,  much  more  difficult.  Let  me  beg  you  once  more,  my  dear 
mother,  to  write  to  me  some  kinder  words  soon,  which  will  show  me 
that  your  anger  is  somewhat  pacified,  and  has  given  place  to  the 
indulgence  and  kindness  to  which  you  have  accustomed  me.  I  appeal  to 
your  judgment,  "sine  ira  et  studio,"  whether  you  have  not  really  a  son  too 
German  to  make  fine  speeches,  and  I  beg  that  you  will  take  these  simple 
lines,  full  of  divers  Teutonisms,  as  a  piece  of  justification. 

I  am  very  glad  to  be  able  to  give  you  today  two  pieces  of  news 
which,  I  hope,  will  not  vex  you,  although  they  tend  to  bring  me  more 
into  publicity. 

1.  On  the  2nd  December  I  shall  appear  for  the  first  time  as  an 
artist-pianist  (up  to  now  it  has  only  been  as  an  amateur-pianist)  in  the 
second  of  the  Quartet-Soir(5es  that  Joachim,  Cossmann  and  other 
musicians  have  begun  to  give  to  the  Weimar  people,  at  a  price  unheard  of 
for  Weimar,  but  fixed  by  Liszt  at  one  thaler  per  concert,  or  a  sub- 
scription ticket  of  three  thalers  for  the  four.  Consequently  only  the  best 
society  frequents  them,  but  in  pretty  large  numbers ;  the  entire  Court 


WEIMAK.  95 

and  the  Grand-Ducal  family  also  come.  I  shall  play  Schumann's 
Quintet,  not  a  particularly  brilliant  piece,  but  one  that  makes  a  sure 
effect,  and  is  easy  to  understand. 

2.  On  December  7th,  on  the  occasion  of  the  performance  of 
Shakespeare's  '  Julius  Csesar,'  Liszt  himself  will  conduct  an  Overture  and 
a  March  composed,  but  not  yet  completely  instrumentated,  by  M.  voire 
JUs,  hater  of  demonstrations,  but  who,  in  spite  of  that,  would  not  be 
displeased  with  an  encouraging  demonstration  on  the  part  of  the  public 
on  this  occasion.  My  Overture  is  tolerably  original  and  interesting,  accord- 
ing to  what  Liszt  says.  You  may  well  imagine  that  I  am  burning  with 
impatience  to  see  this  memorable  day  arrive.  With  regard  to  Reissiger, 
I  do  not  recollect  the  slightest  incident  which  could  have  sown  discord 
between  my  ex-ideal  and  nie  (from  the  time  when  a  holy  flame  filled  my 
soul,  greedy  of  quavers  and  sharps,  for  the  unhappy  'Adele  de  Foix,* 
ma  foi,  une  fois,'  etc.). 

As  to  my  relations  with  Liszt,  I  have  every  reason  to  be  satisfied. 
I  have  the  most  sincere  attachment  for  him,  and  I  endeavour  to  prove  it 
to  him.  This  attachment  is  not  merely  based  upon  gratitude,  but  also 
comes  from  a  sympathy  which  is  quite  involuntary,  for  the  mere  sight  of 
his  noble  and  expressive  features  rejoices  and  expands  my  soul.  I  need 
not  describe  to  you  in  detail  the  healthy  and  encouraging  influence 
which  his  presence  exercises  in  so  many  ways  on  all  those  around  him, 
and  especially  on  a  pupil  who  enjoys  his  more  intimate  friendship  and 
protection.  Enough  that,  although  beset  by  work  of  all  kinds,  he 
regularly  devotes  two  consecutive  hours  a  week  to  my  development  as  a 
pianist,  and  I  find  every  time  new  matter  for  admiration  of  his  genius ; 
and  as  my  intelligence,  thanks  to  Mature  (which  has  been  less  stingy  to 
me  in  this  respect  than  to  many  others),  is  not  very  slow  in  divining  his 
hints,  I  flatter  myself  that  my  musical  education  does  not  go  much 
against  the  grain  with  him.  Apart  from  the  lessons  I  see  him  almost 
every  day,  either  in  the  afternoon  in  company  with  other  artists  or  with 
strangers,  or  else  at  the  family  supper  in  the  evening.  In  a  word,  Liszt 
does  far  more  for  me  than  just  fulfil  his  promises.  I  am  happy  to  be 
able  to  do  some  small  services  for  him,  such  as  copying  his  manuscripts, 
or  doing  some  of  his  commissions  by  correspondence. 

You  would  rejoice  if  you  could  hear  me  practising  for  some  hours 
a  day  at  Czerny's  School  of  Virtuosity  with  a  sangfroid  and  tenacity 
which  even  astonish  me.  Apropos,  I  had  to  pay  rather  dear  for  this 
work,  as  well  as  for  some  other  pieces.  Studies  of  Chopin  and  Henselt 
and  Schumann's  Quintet,  which  cost  a  good  deal.     Although  I  try  to 

*  Opera  of  Reissiger. 


96  HANS  VON   BULOW. 

spend  as  little  as  possible — I  have  not  been  to  the  theatre  for  a  month — 
living  costs  me  more  here,  in  spite  of  all  the  advantages  I  enjoy,  than  in 
any  other  town  living  alone.  The  piano,  the  tuner,  washing,  correspon- 
dence,— all  these  devour  more  of  my  allowance  than  in  Berlin,  to  say 
nothing  of  the  shoemaker,  who  is  especially  favoured  by  the  bad 
pavement  here.  The  other  day  Ziegesar  *  invited  me  to  a  small  party 
at  his  house ;  Liszt  played  a  Trio  of  Beethoven,  and  enchanted  even 
the  musicians  themselves,  which  means  a  great  deal.  The  Hereditary 
Prince  also  put  in  an  appearance  for  a  short  time. 

I  am  so  busy  that  I  don't  know  what  to  do  first.  The  tidings  I 
have  just  received  from  my  father  are  pretty  satisfactory.  I  should  be 
very  much  obliged  if  you  would  send  me  shortly,  with  a  few  lines  in 
reply,  Chopin's  separate  Studies,  which  are  at  home.     Farewell. 


TO  THEODOR  UHLIG  t  (Dresden). 

Weimar,  29th  November  1851. 

My  Dear  Friend, 

At  this  moment  I  am  engaged  on  work  at 
home,  that  is  to  say,  with  the  composition  of  an  Overture  and  March, 
and  possibly  also  other  music,  to  the  'Julius  Caesar'  of  Shakespeare, 
Schlegel,  Laube  and  Genast.  This  music  or  unmusic  (Unmusik)  is  to 
be  given  on  the  14th  of  next  month  in  the  theatre  here,  and  I  am 
longing  to  hear  my  first  great  score.  I  instrumentate  rather  slowly  and 
deliberately,  so  that  this  egotistical  occupation  takes  up  all  my  time. 
The  work  is  rather  a  long  one,  heavily  scored  and  difficult ;  and  written 
somewhat  in  the  rude  style  of  the  '  Rienzi '  Overture,  without  its  grand 
ideas.     If  it  sounds  at  all  decent,  perhaps  I'll  send  it  to  Dresden. 

Next  Tuesday  I  have  to  play  Schumann's  Quintet  at  the  second 
Quartet-Soiree  here — two  debuts  pretty  close  together.  My  friends  in 
art  must  be  glad  about  this,  for  by  these  public  performances  (provided 
they  don't  go  badly)  their  party  gains  in  me,  who  until  now  appeared 
only  as  a  decayed  nobleman,  with  something  of  the  amateur  still  clinging 
to  him,  and  only  just  good  enough  to  run  alongside  of  them.  So  pray 
for  me ! 


*  The  theatre  manager  at  that  time. 

t  Theodor  Uhlig,  a  gifted  musician  and  writer,  well  known  as  one  of  the  friends 
and  warmest  champions  of  Wagner.     Died  in  1853. 


WEIMAR.  97 

For  Brendel's  paper  I  have  found  no  time  to  work  lately.  I  have 
got  him  a  Berlin  correspondent,  so  you  see  I  have  not  been  entirely 
egotistical. 

I  fancy  that  you  will  prefer  to  read  the  enclosures  rather  than  my 
unreadable  scrawl.     This  reminds  me  of  the  necessary  explanation  : — 

1.  I  send  you  herewith  the  first  article  you  wanted,  which  the 
"  martyr  to  truth  " — but  no,  he  appears  to  be  really  a  very  decent  sort  of 
man — declined  to  take.  The  red-pencil  marks  are  his ;  if  you  can  make 
any  use  of  the  best  jokes  in  it,  pray  do  so. 

2.  In  case  you  have  not  yet  read  Heine's  '  Romancero,'  I  send  you 
a  selection,  which  I  have  copied  for  you.  So  he  still  remains  the  German 
Aristophanes  (as  Stahr  calls  him),  until  a  greater  one  appears. 

3.  You  will  find  the  letter  you  wanted  from  Robert  Franz.  *  He 
has  begged  me  not  to  disclose  the  secret  of  his  authorship.  So,  if  you 
have  it  printed,  please  keep  it  anonymous,  i.e.  without  Robert's  name. 
Perhaps  I  can  persuade  Franz  later  on  to  withdraw  this  prohibition. 

I  have  been  able  to  do  as  yet  very  little — don't  scold  me — at  the 
translation,  and  I  shall  not  be  able  to  finish  it  before  New  Year.  If  you 
can  find  someone  else  who  can  do  it  quicker,  do  give  it  to  him ;  but  if 
there  is  time,  then  have  patience  with  me. 

In  confidence  :  the  time  which  Liszt  devotes  to  me,  the  hospitality 
which  he  has  shown  me, — these  make  me  very  anxious  and  happy  to  be 
able  to  do  anything  for  him  in  return.  I  know  you  will  agree  with  me  in 
this.  The  limits  which  this  sets  to  my  time  appear  but  a  small  sacrifice 
in  comparison  with  all  I  have  received. 


In  the  Gazette  Musicale,  which  Liszt  takes  in  addition  to  the 
France  Musicale  and  the  Diapason  (a  Belgian  paper),  nothing  has  yet 
appeared  about  your  capital  adaptation  of  Roger.  I  don't  need  to  tell 
you  how  much  I  rejoice  in  all  your  articles,  and  how  fully  I  agree  with 
you.  With  regard  to  Schumann,  his  later  works — that  is  to  say,  for 
many  years  past — have  been  quite  antipathetic  to  me  on  account  of  the 
humdrum,  narrow-minded  good-citizenship  that  prevails  in  them.  A 
laudable  exception  to  this  is  the  very  beautiful  Overture  to  the  '  Bride 
of  Messina,'  which  Brendel  unfortunately  has  not  fully  appreciated. 

As  you  are  aware,  even  longer  than  I  am,  that  there  is  nothing  to 
be  done  with  *  Siegfried '  in  the  immediate  future,  as  "Wagner  wants  to 
write  a  Trilogy,  and  has  altered  his  whole  plan,  it  leaves  us  some  hope 


*  Printed  in  the  Neue  ZeUschrift  fur  Musik,  26th  March  1852,   No.  13,  page 
142,  signed  by  Robert  Franz. 

G 


98  HANS  VON   BtJLOW. 

for  the  '  Flying  Dutchman  ' ;  the  Princess  is  tremendously  in  favour  of  it, 
and  has  long  been  urging  Liszt  to  do  it. 
Please  kindly  excuse  haste. 


TO  HIS  FATHER. 

Weimar,   H//t  Deceviher  1851. 
Dearest  Father, 

I  have  chosen  to  write  to  you  the  day  after 
rather  than  the  evening  before  a  great  event  j  it  is  only  a  pity  tliat  the 
surprise  comes  so  late,  for  I  should  so  have  liked  to  give  you  this 
amusement  on  your  birthday.  You  will  be  impatient  to  learn  without 
more  ado  what  this  said  great  event  can  be ;  I  refer  you  to  the  enclosed 
theatre-bill,  and  add  also  that  it  is  my  first  public  appearance  as  a 
composer.  During  the  last  month  the  ambition  and  impulse  to  produce 
something  suddenly  seized  me.  '  Julius  Csesar '  was  shortly  to  be  acted, 
and  the  idea,  which  had  once  seized  upon  me  at  a  very  immature  period 
of  my  life,  to  write  music  to  it,  took  hold  of  me  again.  I  read  the 
tragedy  through  again,  and  it  really  inspired  me  to  a  task  which  I  have 
carried  through  with  industry  and  love ;  .  .  .  twice  lately  I  have  had  to 
work  by  night  in  addition.  Liszt  was  exceedingly  pleased  with  the 
sketch  of  it,  and  encouraged  me  throughout.  He  studied  the  rather 
difficult  Overture  with  great  care,  and  conducted  the  performance 
himself.  So  my  debut  as  a  composer  was  in  no  way  mesquin,  and  it 
conduces  no  little  to  my  pleasure  that  I  have  not  disgraced  my  father 
thereby.  Don't  laugh  at  me  if  after  my  first  success  I  am  a  little  elated 
and  jolly,  and  express  to  you  quite  simply  my  hope  that  in  the  eleventh 
edition  of  Brockhaus's  '  Conversationslexikon '  I  shall  have  a  little  corner 
after  you  :  by  that  time  I  think  I  shall  achieve  the  distinction.  To 
return  to  our  starting-point :  the  Overture  was  received  with  lively 
applause,  only  I  was  vexed  at  the  noise,  at  first  rather  loud,  in  the 
Galerie  noble,  for  whom  my  rather  serious  and  long  Overture  was  not 
adapted.  This  noise  did  not  cease  till  the  very  prominent  trombone 
Recitative  "  Et  tu.  Brute,"  followed  by  a  bar's  rest — captatio  benevolentioe 
to  you — at  which  those  "  candidates  for  the  lantern  "  *  were  alarmed 
when  they  heard  their  own  voices.  A  War  March  between  the  fifth  and 
sixth  Acts,  t  conducted  by  Stbr,  was  also  very  successful ;  it  sinned  less 


*  Meaning  '  aristocrats  ; '  the  occupants  of  the  Oalerie  noble. 
t  Evidently  an  arrangement  for  the   German  stage,  probably  by  Genast  and 
others,  which  would  account  for  a  sixth  act, 


WEIMAR.  99 

against  modern  taste  than  the  Overture.  The  theatre  music  and  a  well- 
thought-out  melodrama  for  the  appearance  of  the  ghosts  also  made  a  good 
effect.  For  the  second  performance  I  shall  also  write  the  prescribed 
battle  music  in  the  orchestra  during  the  change  of  scene ;  then  they  will 
put  on  the  bill  "  Overture  and  Incidental  Music  by,"  etc. 

The  performance  of  the  tragedy,  as  a  whole,  was  very  bad,  except 
the  decorations  and  scenes  with  the  populace,  which  went  excellently. 

Last  Tuesday  I  also  made  mj  first  appearance  in  public  in  Weimar  as 
a  pianist.  For  I  had  already  been  heard  at  certain  large  parties,  which  I 
could  not  get  out  of,  as  Liszt  took  me  to  them.  The  occasion  of  my 
debut  as  a  pianist  was  the  second  concert  of  the  Quartet-Academy — 
we  have  here  a  most  excellent  Quartet — at  which  modern  chamber-music 
was  to  be  produced.  The  first  was  set  aside  for  the  usual  trefoil  of 
Haydn,  Mozart  and  Beethoven ;  the  last  will  give  three  Quartets  of 
Beethoven  from  his  different  periods.  The  choice  was  not  a  thankful 
one  for  the  piano,  but  opportune  for  me.  It  was  a  Quintet  of  Robert 
Schumann — one  of  his  early  works,  full  of  freshness  and  spirit,  and 
generally  of  a  lively  character.  I  am  sure  it  would  have  met  your 
approval  if  you  had  heard  it,  and  your  lasting  approval  too,  not  a  pass- 
ing one,  such  as  you  felt  for  the  '  Waldscenen.'  In  short,  the  piece 
pleased  quite  tremendously  for  Weimar,  and  I  earned  the  most  unex- 
pected and  brilliant  praise  for  it. 

With  regard  to  my  present  occupations,  I  have  first  of  all  to  work 
for  Liszt  and  for  the  Brendel  paper,  especially  to  write  articles  on  piano- 
composition  in  the  spirit  of  Liszt.  Then  I  am  also  getting  ready  a  couple 
of  new  books  of  songs  (for  eventual  publication),  a  couple  of  pieces  for 
piano  and  violin,  and  a  Trio.  Before  I  set  to  work  on  a  larger  dramatic 
subject  I  want  to  write  a  good  deal  of  specific  music,  so  as  to  get  thoroughly 
into  the  routine  of  it.  I  am  so  happy  that  for  once  and  away  I  have 
done  something  well,  and  had  a  success.  It  will  make  the  work  go  all 
the  quicker  now. — One  humble  question  :  Could  you,  without  having 
any  further  trouble,  ask  Tieck  to  give  his  protection  to  my  *  Caesar '  Music 
in  Berlin  1 


TO  FRAU  RITTER  (Dresdkn). 

Dresden,  26th  December  1851. 
Dear  Madam, 

Do  not  be  surprised  that  these  lines  have  to  take  the 
place  of  a  call  upon  you,  on  which  I  had  been  so  much  counting,  and 
which  I  am  obliged  with  bitter  tears  to  renounce.     No  doubt  you  know 


100  HANS   VON   BULOW. 

all  about  me ;  your  son,  my  dearest  friend  in  all  the  world,  will  probably 
have  told  you  about  the  time  we  spent  together  in  Switzerland.  You  have 
probably  also  heard  about  the  turning-point  of  my  career  there,  since  my 
mother's  generosity  enabled  me,  in  spite  of  her  deeply-rooted  and  uncon- 
querable aversion  from  my  adopting  an  artistic  career,  to  carry  on  my 
studies,  under  Liszt's  guidance  in  Weimar,  to  the  desired  end  of  a  com- 
plete material  independence. 

My  mother,  who  has  really  suffered  very  greatly  through  me,  and 
who  most  earnestly  desires  a  reconciliation  between  us,  invited  me  to  spend 
the  Christmas  holidays  with  her  in  Dresden.  When  I  arrived  here,  the 
first  indispe7isable  condition  of  pardon  for  the  wrong  I  had  done  my 
mother  was  that  I  should  avoid  all  intercourse  with  the  dearest  friend  of 
my  youth,  your  son.  Dreadfully  hard  as  this  sacrifice  is  to  mc,  bitter  as 
are  the  tears  that  this  decision  has  cost  me,  and  little  as  I  would  have 
undertaken  the  journey  to  Dresden  had  I  known  of  this  beforehand,  yet 
I  have  not  the  courage  to  go  against  this  first  indispensable  condition  of  a 
reconciliation  with  my  mother,  however  inexplicable  it  may  in  some  ways 
seem  to  me.  A  sentiment  of  reverence,  which  I  think  you,  dearest  Madam, 
will  be  the  first  to  appreciate,  makes  me  feel  that  it  it  is  my  duty,  at  any 
cost,  to  bring  about  this  reconciliation. 

You  will  pity  me  if  you  reflect  how  sad  and  unhappy  it  must  make 
me  to  think  that  tomorrow  I  shall  be  so  near  to  my  beloved  Karl,  and  yet 
not  daring  to  enjoy  the  longed-for  happiness  of  seeing  him  again.  I  wish 
I  could  run  away,  for  I  do  not  know  how  I  shall  bear  it.  Happily 
the  misery  will  not  last  long,  as  in  2  or  3  days  I  return  to  Weimar. 
But  at  the  beginning  of  January,  somewhere  about  the  7th  or  10th, 
'  Lohengrin '  will  be  given.  If  Karl  would  come  and  see  me  then,  and 
perhaps  his  dear  brother  with  him,  it  would  make  me  endlessly  happy, 
and  make  up  for  these  miserable  days  now. 

I  hope  that  Karl's  just  pride  will  allow  of  this  !  By  what  I  know 
of  you  I  do  not  feel  afraid  that  he  will  be  hurt  by  this  letter.  Beg  your 
sons — I  appeal  to  your  motherly  love — to  ctmtinue  to  like  me  which  will 
bind  me  to  them  for  ever. 

Farewell. — With  most  sincere  respect, 

H.  G.  V.  BtJLOw. 

Forgive  the  evident  signs  of  an  emotion  which  I  could  not  master. 


WEIMAR.  101 

TO  HIS  FATHER. 

Weimar,  21s!'  January  1852. 

Dearest  Father, 

I  have  so  many  things  to  thank  you  for  that  I  am  quite 
puzzled  where  to  begin.  And  since  I  received  your  Christmas  letter  so 
much  time  has  elapsed,  that  I  must  go  back  a  long  way  in  order  to  tell 
you  everything.  Luckily  today  I  have  time  for  this — until  now  I  have 
tried  in  vain  to  get  several  consecutive  free  hours  in  which  to  write  to 
you  fully,  for  in  paltry  little  notes  one  can't  say  much,  and  they  are 
merely  a  conglomeration  of  news  in  a  more  or  less  laconic  form,  which, 
after  all,  requires  amplifying  in  the  end. 

From  the  25th  December  until  my  birthday  I  was  in  Dresden. 
There  I  received  your  letter,  for  which  my  warmest  thanks ;  it  gave  me 
as  much  pleasure  as  the  news  of  my  success  as  a  composer  seems  to  have 
given  you.  The  present  you  enclosed  was  no  less  valuable  as  a  token  of 
your  loving  sympathy  than  it  was  welcome  in  itself.  I  wanted  to  be 
back  iu  Weimar  for  the  New  Year :  I  had  given  up  the  hope  of  hearing 
my  *  Caesar '  Music,  which  was  to  be  rei)eated  there  with  the  tragedy  on 
the  28th  December.  This  time  Liszt  did  not  conduct  it  again,  as  it  was 
enough  for  him  to  have  studied  it  and  introduced  me  as  the  author  by 
conducting  it  himself  on  the  first  occasion.  But  the  performance  of 
'  Antony  and  Cleopatra,'  even  though  an  arrangement  of  it  by  the 
Court  Steward,  Liittichau,  enchained  me  to  Dresden  a  couple  of  days 
longer,  and  then  a  less  pleasant  visitor,  in  the  shape  of  my  headache, 
which  recurs  regularly  every  half-year,  and  which  made  me  for  several 
days  incapable  of  thinking.  On  my  return  journey  on  the  8th  I  was 
obliged  to  stay  two  nights  at  Leipzig.  Liszt  had  given  me  a  heap  of 
commissions  to  do  for  him  there,  and  had  also  taken  the  opportunity  of 
giving  me  the  warmest  and  most  flattering  letters  of  introduction  to 
Kistner,  Hartel,  David  and  others.  It  appears  that  before  Liszt  returned 
to  Weimar  (in  October)  he  stopped  at  Leipzig,  and,  as  he  mentioned 
me  as  one  of  the  pupils  awaiting  him,  people  told  him  the  most  awful 
tales  about  my  humble  self.  Madame  David  said  :  "  Mais  il  est  d'une 
impertinence  affreuse."  Moscheles  and  his  wife  had  the  idea  that  I  was 
such  a  mad  revolutionist  that  it  was  impossible  to  have  any  sensible  talk 
with  me.  Others  said  that  I  had  once  made  a  scandal  amongst  my 
relations  by  inveighing  against  Mendelssohn  before  everybody  (not  a 
word  of  which  is  true) ;  that  I  am  an  eccentric,  crazed  fellow,  who  pos- 
sesses the  idiosyncrasy  of  enjoying  nothing  but  Wagner's  music,  and  so 
forth.     In  short,  you  see  that  Liszt's  mode  of  procedure  was  not  super- 


102  HANS  VON   BtJLOW. 

fluous,  and  was  very  timely,  as  next  year,  when  I  begin  my  concert-tours, 
I  must  also  make  my  debut  in  Leipzig.  Liszt's  letter  of  introduction  to 
Kistner  drew  from  him  the  exclamation  of  astonishment :  "  Well,  you 
must  have  cut  out  all  the  others  who  surround  Liszt,  for  you  seem  now 
to  be  his  favourite  !  " 

Well,  when  I  had  done  all  Liszt's  and  my  own  commissions  in 
Leipzig,  and  got  back  here  again,  where  I  was  warmly  welcomed  by  my 
friends,  I  found  everybody  full  of  the  preparations  for  a  second  perform- 
ance of  '  Lohengrin,'  and  I  also  found  work  to  do  at  once.  I  had  to  write 
about  a  dozen  letters  of  invitation ;  and  as  strangers  were  coming  from 
many  cities,  as  the  confederates  used  to  come  to  the  Olympic  Games 
thousands  of  years  ago,  I  was  appointed  to  do  the  honours  of  Weimar  to 
them,  whereby  my  purse  of  "  time-money  "  was  pretty  well  drained,  cer- 
tainly not  altogether  without  regard  "  pour  le  roi  de  Prusse,"  whereby,  on 
the  contrary,  much  that  is  useful  and  necessary  is  gained. 

After  an  enchanting  evening  of  '  Lohengrin,'  which  I  can  never 
forget,  and  after  the  visitors  had  departed  a  few  days  later,  fresh  work 
awaited  me.  Liszt  was  in  a  great  hurry  for  the  copy  of  the  arrange- 
ment of  Beethoven's  Ninth  Symphony  for  two  pianos,  which  I  had 
promised  him :  I  had  not  been  able  to  finish  this  rather  tremendous 
piece  of  work  before  Christmas,  being  extremely  occupied  at  that  time 
pro  domo,  in  spite  of  which  I  often  went  without  my  dinner  in  order  to 
lose  no  time,  and  for  something  like  five  to  six  days  I  did  not  get  to 
bed  till  near  three  o'clock  in  the  morning — fatigues  which  rather  knocked 
me  up  and  made  me  look  ill,  but  from  which  I  entirely  recovered  in 
Dresden  by  an  absolute  *'  utile  far  niente."  Now  comes  suddenly  a  charity 
concert  in  addition,  for  which  Liszt,  in  spite  of  his  dislike  to  mixing 
heathen  Art  with  Christian  *'  caritas,"  was  obliged  to  do  something.  This 
something  consisted  in  making  me  appear  again  as  a  pianist  in  public, 
a  practice  which  is  of  essential  use  to  me,  as  it  is  by  such  opportunities 
here  in  Weimar  alone  that  I  can  get  over  that  miserable  nervousness  in 
public  playing,  from  which  I  have  begun  to  suffer  again  for  some  time 
past.  I  send  you  herewith  the  programme,  which  you  can  put  with  the 
rest  of  your  collection  of  trophies.  I  gave  universal  satisfaction.  I 
must  also  take  this  opportunity  of  explaining  to  you  the  misunderstand- 
ing which  my  account  of  my  first  appearance  here  as  a  pianist  occasioned 
you.  The  piece  which  I  had  then  chosen  for  one  of  the  Quartet  even- 
ings, which  are  designed  for  serious  chamber-music,  answered  the 
purpose  in  view,  but  just  on  that  account  was  no  virtuoso  piece.  Of 
course  virtuosity  was  required  in  the  performance  of  it,  and  it  was  no 
wonder  that  in  this  ensemble  piece  my  special  talent  for  execution  should 
be  made  prominent.    So  the  thing  is  as  follows  :  at  my  first  appearance  I 


WEIMAR.  103 

had  more  opportunity  to  show  off  the  piano-playing  musician,  whilst  at 
the  concert  that  has  just  taken  place  it  was  rather  an  opportunity  to 
show  forth  the  technical  pianist.  Liszt  was  satisfied  with  me  on  both 
occasions,  and  equally  so  with  the  recognition  I  obtained  from  the 
Weimar  public. 

With  regard  to  my  studies  as  a  Virtuoso — in  the  coming  time 
these  will  have  special  attention,  though  not  quite  exclusively  so. 
Liszt's  opinion,  that  through  the  career  of  a  pianist  I  shall,  in  three  to 
four  years,  attain  a  material  independence,  which  must  be  the  first  aim 
for  my  future,  has  become  strengthened  in  the  course  of  the  time  which 
I  have  passed  with  him,  and  he  expressed  this  to  me  only  yesterday  in  a 
long  talk  with  me,  somewhat  in  the  following  manner  ;  "  I  might  make 
use  of  you  here  as  I  could  of  no  one  else,  to  help  me  in  my  post  of 
conductor,  and  might  also  help  you  to  a  position  in  the  Institute  here  in 
a  short  time ;  but  I  consider  that  this  would  be  an  injustice  to  your 
future,  as,  by  the  other  road  (the  career  of  a  Virtuoso),  you  can  attain 
the  same  end  in  a  more  brilliant,  more  favourable,  and  even  a  shorter 
way.  Now  you  would  naturally  take  a  subordinate  place  (possibly 
as  second  music-director),  and  perhaps  you  would  not  find  it  so  easy 
to  get  out  of  it :  but  in  any  case  by  this  (what  I  may  call  bureau- 
cratic road)  you  could  never  rise  step  by  step  to  a  higher  position  as 
conductor  at,  say,  Berlin,  Dresden  or  Munich.  Posts  such  as  these  one 
gets  all  in  a  moment,  for  one  is  appointed  to  them  ;  wait^  therefore,  for 
such  an  appointment  as  this,  when  you  are  materially  independent  and 
set  on  a  firm  footing  by  the  results  of  your  career  as  a  pianist,  for  which, 
then,  you  will  not  have  to  wait  so  long," — Perhaps  he  will  write  to  you 
himself.  Your  letter,  for  which  my  best  thanks  in  his  name  and  then 
in  my  own,  has  pleased  him.  He  sends  his  best  remembrances  to  you, 
and  is  very  sorry  that  just  at  this  moment  he  is  not  able  to  answer  you 
— that  is  what  he  said  to  me  a  fortnight  ago — as  he  is  uncommonly 
busy.  The  first  four  months  of  the  year  he  always  devotes  entirely  to 
the  opera,  as  it  is  the  custom  always  to  give  a  new  opera  every  time  there 
is  a  Grand-Ducal  birthday,  all  of  which  fall  in  the  months  of  February 
and  March.  On  the  16th  February  Berlioz's  opera  '  Benvenuto  Cellini,' 
which  made  a  half  fiasco  in  Paris  a  long  time  ago,  is  to  be  given  ;  the 
composer  probably  to  be  present  at  it.  I  am  delighted  to  think  of 
making  his  acquaintance.  Although  I  don't  at  all  like  the  course  which 
Berlioz  pursues — anti- Wagnerian,  pseudo-imitation  of  Beethoven — yet 
his  genius,  which  stands  forth  in  so  many  departments  of  his  art, 
interests  me,  and  to  it  the  later  development  of  music  has  much  cause  to 
be  grateful  for  its  rich  technical  acquirements,  especially  in  regard  to 
instrumentation.     Berlioz  has  taken  the  initiative  in  many  innovations, 


104  HAI^S  VON   BiJLOW. 

and  has  shown  the  right  practical  application  of  them.  He  is  certainly  a 
Frenchman  through  and  through,  and  his  brilliaucy  rests  on  externals. 
That  Liszt  produces  his  opera  is  due,  in  the  first  place,  to  his  personal 
friendship  for  him  ;  and,  secondly,  to  the  motive  which,  if  not  altogether 
an  unqualified  one,  is  nevertheless  very  meritorious,  of  doing  justice  to  a 
man  who  is  almost  more  misjudged  in  Germany  than  in  his  owji  country. 
Another  motive  is  also  that  of  raising  singers  and  orchestra  (of  the 
nation  which  stands  foremost  in  its  indolence  and  ignorant  arrogance)  to 
a  higher  level,  by  making  them  undertake  difficult  and  unaccustomed 
tasks.  This  French  and  Italian  rubbish  which,  since  the  July  Revolu- 
tion, has  made  its  way  on  all  the  German  stages,  has  really  done 
incalculable  harm.  These  composers  are  obedient  slaves  of  the  singers, 
to  whom  they  leave  absolute  freedom,  in  return  for  which  the  latter,  it 
is  true,  push  on  their  rubbish,  only,  with  success  ;  and  the  singers  are 
so  spoiled  by  them  that  they  will  not  any  longer  submit  to  the  yoke 
of  a  correct  declamation  and  dramatic  expression  laid  upon  them  by 
Wagner  and  Gluck,  and  even  hardly  trouble  themselves  to  fulfil  the 
very  moderate  demands  of  Cherubini  and  Spontini,  or  of  Weber,  Spohr 
and  Marschner.  Liszt  alone  cannot  put  an  end  to  this  scandal,  but  the 
sight  of  a  living  conductor — indeed  the  only  really  active  one — under- 
taking, and  successfully  carrying  through,  the  work  of  a  radical  regenera- 
tion of  opera,  so  far  as  such  a  thing  is  possible  under  present  political 
and  social  conditions,  may  perhaps  wake  up  the  rising  generation. 
Amongst  other  important  novelties  in  art  we  are  to  have  Byron's 
'  Manfred '  in  March — I  don't  know  which  translation — with  Schumann's 
music.  Liszt  is  very  much  intercepted  in  his  great  plans  just  now  by 
Beaulieu,  the  Intendant  of  the  moment.  Next  season,  however,  Liszt's 
friend,  Herr  v.  Ziegesar,  who  is  now  quite  well  again,  will  resume  the 
reins  of  government,  and  then  Wagner's  'Fliegender  Hollander,'  and 
Gluck's  '  Iphigenia  in  Aulis,'  with  Wagner's  arrangement,  will  be 
resumed.  I  myself  take  a  deep  personal  interest  in  the  change  of 
Intendant :  under  the  present  one,  who  is  very  stingy  with  free  tickets,  I 
cannot  get  any  ;  I  almost  had  to  pay  to  get  in  to  hear  my  own  music  ! 
So  I  go  very  little  to  the  theatre  now  on  that  account,  and  indeed  my 
former  passion  for  it  has  greatly  diminished ;  sometimes,  but  only  very 
occasionally,  Liszt  orders  a  free  ticket  to  be  given  to  me.  The  editor  of 
the  official  paper,  a  Dr.  v.  Mangolt  from  Dresden,  lately  appointed  here, 
a  man  of  pretty  liberal  opinions — for  there  is  still  some  individuality  in 
opinion  here — even  he  has  received  no  free  tickets  !  Under  Ziegesar  I 
am  certain  to  be  thought  of. 

Next    Monday  Sontag  makes  her  appearance  here,  and  vouchsafes 
the   artistic   performance   of    a   forty-eight-years-old  soubrette   in   the 


WEIMAR.  105 

'Figliadel  Regimento  ' ;  the  following  Wednesday  she  will  sing  once 
more,  either  Martha,  or  Rosina  in  the  '  Barbiere.'  I  confess  that  I  am 
not  in  the  least  anxious  for  this  treat ;  and  added  to  this  I  should  never 
call  Sontag  an  artist  in  the  true  sense  of  the  word,  on  account  of  this 
wretched  choice  of  hers  (always  excepting  the  '  Barbiere ').  The  prices, 
which  will  be  trebled — for  one  evening  she  is  certain  to  receive  one 
hundred  louis  d'or — would  also  further  restrain  me  from  satisfying  my 
curiosity,  but  Liszt  has  managed  to  have  a  place  kept  for  me. 

Amongst  other  things  I  have  the  bad  habit  of  hopping  about  from  one 
thing  to  another  in  my  letters,  and  because  my  pen  cannot  catch  up  my 
thoughts,  in  which  there  is  occasionally  a  dearth,  owing  to  a  musical  idea 
coming  into  my  head  between-times,  I  make  the  most  extraordinary  leaps 
in  all  directions  in  what  I  write.  It  is  all  very  well  for  me  to  determine 
to  write  a  proper  letter  ;  in  the  most  favourable  case  it  only  results  in  a 
larger  and  more  careless  note.  I  can't  fix  my  mind  on  a  continuous 
chain  of  thought,  and  wander  about  in  a  sort  of  anarchical  way,  from 
innate  propensity. 

I  will  now  tell  you  briefly  my  plans  for  the  immediate  future,  my 
studies,  and  the  work  I  am  doing.  The  principal  thing  for  me  is  of 
course  to  work  as  hard  as  possible  at  the  piano,  and  to  prepare  an 
extensive  repertoire  for  my  concert-tours.  Liszt  has  decided  this  him- 
self, and  also  that  I  should  make  a  successive  study  of  the  pieces 
selected.  As  regards  composition,  I  am  now  doing  an  Overture  to 
'  Romeo  and  Juliet,'  the  musico-philosophic  plan  of  which — not  of 
course  after  Gervinus  and  Flathe — is  already  prepared,  and  some  definite 
ideas  are  collected  :  at  the  same  time  I  shall  work  at  a  Pianoforte  Trio,  a 
work  in  which,  in  consideration  of  its  specific  musical  basis,  there  will  be 
less  of  the  virtuoso  element.  A  new  book  of  songs,  dedicated  to  our 
best  singer,  Frau  v.  Milde,  with  whom  I  am  on  good  terms,  will  be 
ready  immediately.  At  the  beginning  of  February  I  am  also  to  blossom 
forth  as  a  schoolmaster.  A  young  pianiste,  Fraulein  Soest  from  Goslar, 
daughter  of  an  officer,  is  coming,  I  believe,  to  take  lessons  from  Liszt. 
Liszt  has  no  time  for  this,  so  will  only  overlook  her  once  a  month,  and 
I  am  to  take  his  place  by  giving  one  hour's  lesson  a  week  for  one  thaler. 
I  don't  know  what  I  shall  look  like  when  I  receive  the  money ;  I  believe 
I  shall  send  it  back — at  any  rate  I  have  the  greatest  objection  in  my  own 
mind  to  receiving  payment  like  a  plebeian — and  yet  I  shall  certainly  want 
it  all  the  same.  Besides  these  things  I  have  mentioned,  the  coming 
time  will  give  me  much  to  hear  and  to  study.  My  work  as  a  writer  is 
involved  with  my  position  to  Liszt  on  the  one  side,  and  with  Wagner  on 
the  other.  The  latter  branch  of  it  gives  me  less  to  do  than  the  former. 
I  have  just  had  a  great  discussion  with  the  Grenzbote  about  both  of 


106  HANS  VON  bOlOW. 

them,  and  have  carried  it  through  to  the  great  entertainment  of  my 
friends.  The  article  about  Kellstab  you  must  have  ;  it  would  be  a 
shame  if  it  were  to  be  lost.  I  shall  write  to  Eellstab — perhaps  he  has 
kept  it — and  beg  for  a  copy. 

As  regards  politics,  I  am  delighted  at  your  promised  omission  on 
this  unrefreshing  topic.  I  am  the  old,  red  Republican  I  was.  But  I 
think  that  homoeopathy  is  no  radical  cure — politics  will  not  be  annihi- 
lated by  politics ;  the  primitive  force  of  a  natural  element  will  make  a 
radical  cure,  and  for  this  I  believe  in  the  excellence  of  '  pyropathy,'  for 
hydropathy  will  not  do  here.  I  don't  read  any  political  paper  beyond 
the  Kreuzzeitung.  My  necessary  political  education  I  get  out  of 
Kladderadatsch — and  when  anyone  asks  me  to  which  party  I  belong, 
I  say  "  to  Kladderadatsch' s  party."  Moreover  it  is  the  only  one  that 
has  a  future  before  it. 

The  great  work  you  are  now  doing  interests  me  much;  and,  knowing 
Ernst,  with  whom  you  are  carrying  it  out,  I  hope  much  from  it.  I  shall 
be  grateful  for  further  tidings,  especially  about  the  succession  of  the 
members  of  this  '  Pantheon,'  in  which  I  hope  you  won't,  out  of  excess  of 
Teutonism,  forget  the  French  nation.* 

"With  regurd  to  my  associates,  the  society  in  which  I  live,  the  best  is 
— the  artists.  Raff,  Joachim,  Cossmann;  the  poet  Frankl,  whom  you  also 
know,  and  who  has  now  completed  a  great  epic,  *  Tannhauser,'  which  is 
a  remarkable  and  talented  work  (comprising  the  period  of  his  life  until 
his  entrance  into  the  Horselberg)  —  ail  these  I  meet  daily  at  the 
'  Erbprinz,'  and  occasionally  elsewhere  also.  I  am  now  and  then  at 
Liszt's  for  dinner  and  for  the  evening.  Every  Sunday  is  Quartet-cultus, 
chiefly  Beethoven,  either  at  Joachim's  or  at  Liszt's  house.  There  one 
also  sees  the  *  Minorum.'  t 

I  don't  go  into  society  at  all.  Hofrath  X.,  whose  wife  and  daughters 
adore  me,  occasionally  invites  me,  but  I  decline  to  go  there  any  more, 
because  he  is  a  violent  antagonist  of  Liszt's.  If  I  went  over  to  the  anti- 
Liszt  side  I  should  soon  be  immensely  popular.  Liszt's  enemies  here  are 
like  refuse  by  the  sea ;  for  he  interests  himself  in  other  things  besides 
piano-playing — the  '  Goethe-Stiftung,'  etc. — and  that  is  a  thorn  in  the 
people's  side.  They  only  allow  him,  in  fact,  the  right  to  entertain  them 
as  a  pianist,  which  he  has  given  up  once  for  all. 

With  Wagner  I  carry  on  a  not  particularly  lively,  but  continuous, 


*  Biographies  of  great  men  in  history — a  kind  of  modern  '  Phitarch  ' — on  which 
Eduard  von  Billow  was  at  that  time  engaged,  the  completion  of  which  was  frustrated 
by  his  death  a  year  and  a  half  later. 

t  Franciscans. 


WEIMAR.  107 

correspondence.  I  shall  be  sending  him  very  soon  my  score  to  look 
through,  with  a  piano  arrangement  of  which,  for  four  hands,  I  am  now 
occupied. 

He  feels  very  lonely  and  unhappy  at  Zurich,  although  Ritter  has 
made  him  safe  materially  through  his  (Ritter's)  legacy  (from  an  uncle). 
Wagner  complains  that  he  is  condemned  to  live  in  his  own  thoughts,  and 
not  in  a  real  world,  and  that  he  is  worse  off  than  deaf  Beethoven — be 
has  never  yet  been  able  to  hear  his  own  '  Lohengrin '  once  !  I  often  have 
to  write  to  him  instead  of  Liszt,  who  is  excessively  busy. 

I  see  that,  if  I  go  on  in  this  style,  I  shall  never  come  to  an  end, 
and  yet  I  really  must  do  so,  for  my  letter  has  dragged  on  over  several 
days,  although  I  have  devoted  almost  every  spare  moment  to  it. 

On  the  1st  February  1852,  he  writes  from  Weimar  to  his  friend  Uhlig, 
in  Dresden : — 

In  the  next  number  of  Brendel's  paper  you  will  read  an  article  on 
Henriette  Sontag  by  me.  I  think  Brendel  has  entirely  washed  his  hands 
of  this.  It  is  at  any  rate  the  best  article  I  have  yet  written.  It  will 
create  a  scandal,  but  a  scandal  that  is  not  an  article  of  luxury,  but  of 
necessity.  If  you  read  it  before  you  have  heard  Sontag  you  will  think 
that  it  is  reeking  of  impudence,  but  afterwards  you  will  see  that  it  is 
really  only  full  of  truth  and  moderation.  What  a  lot  of  good  puns  I 
could  have  put  into  it  also ! 

In  a  long  letter  to  his  sister,  on  the  6th  February,  he  says  : — 

Early  this  morning  Liszt  suddenly  paid  me  a  visit  in  my  room,  and 
made  me  a  present,  which  was  also  a  great  joke ;  a  perfectly  beautiful 
stick,  most  original  and  full  of  meaning — I  am  so  ignorant  that  I  can't 
tell  you  the  name  of  the  material  of  which  it  is  made ;  it  is  brown,  and 
looks  like  dark  amber,  is  pliable,  but  thick,  and  quite  of  a  natural  shape — 
is  it  perhaps  indiarubber  ?  Enough  that  the  one  you  gave  me  must  hide 
himself  away,  and  I  have  helped  him  to  do  this  by  finding  a  corner 
for  him. 

But  now  the  best  of  the  thing  :  Liszt  had  this  stick  brought  for  me 
by  Joachim,  who  has  just  been  a  trip  to  Leipzig,  because  he  wished  to 
endow  me  with  one  as  like  as  two  pins  to  the  one  he  carries  himself,  only 
in  proportion  to  my  height.  To  carry  this  stick  gives  me  even  greater, 
though  just  as  childish,  pleasure  as  the  wearing  of  a  cockade  did  in  my 
more  timid  year  of  '48.  It  is  to  me  like  a  badge  of  the  order  of  Liszt  of 
the  Altenburg. 


108  HANS   VON   BULOW. 

Liszt  and  the  Princess  also  have  grown  fond  of  me  little  by  little, 
and  I  am  regarded  more  than  formerly  as  the  animal  domestique  ;  I  say 
animal,  because  that  expresses  best  the  feeling  of  comfort.  Thus  Liszt 
has  lately — certainly  without  my  having  anything  to  do  with  it — found 
out  on  several  occasions  that  I  am  not  only  a  less  uncultivated  man,  but 
also  a  less  ignoble  and  insensible  one  than  other  young  slow-coaches,  and 
that  has  pleased  him  on  account  of  its  rarity.  .  .  . 

Henriette  Sontag  has  been  here.  If  you  have  an  opportunity  of 
hearing  her,  don't  avail  yourself  of  it.  The  other  day  I  met  Eckermann, 
who  is  always  tremendously  friendly  with  me.  It  was  pouring  with  rain, 
but  he  came  boldly  through  the  mud  to  me  with  his  umbrella  up,  and  had 
a  quarter  of  an  hour's  chat  with  me.  Amongst  other  things,  he  told  me 
that  Goethe  had  spoken  to  him  as  follows  about  Sontag :  "  When  I  had 
understood  what  kind  of  a  creature  she  was,  and  had  got  sufficiently 
enraged  over  the  bad  taste  of  the  public,  I  took  both  my  grandchildren, 
in  spite  of  their  resistance,  and  led  them,  one  in  each  hand,  out  of  the 
theatre,  just  as  Lot  fled  with  his  two  daughters  from  Sodom  and 
Gomorrha  when  his  wife  was  turned  into  a  pillar  of  salt."  Eckermann 
has  forgotten  to  publish  this,  so  now  boast  that  you  know  it. 

She  is  a  woman  gifted  with  a  voice  sans  pareil,  and  is  an  excellent 
soubrette.  But  poetry  and  passion  are  conspicuous  by  their  complete 
absence,  and  therefore  I  should  prefer  her  room  to  her  company.  The 
Lind  has  much  more  stuff  in  her.  Liszt  says  :  "  C'est  une  antipathic  de 
race."  He  received  her  with  icy  politeness ;  that  was  splendid.  But  a 
coquette  she  is  and  always  has  been.  See  her  for  yourself,  and  then 
mend  your  ways,  or  else  when  you  are  a  married  woman  of  48 
you  won't  look  more  than  24.  Keally  and  truly,  Lucille  Grahn,* 
who  has  been  dancing  here  this  week,  has  more  music  in  her  little 
toe  than  Sontag,  and  I  much  prefer  her  as  a  musician.  I  believe  I  shall 
meet  the  Grahn  this  evening  at  supper  at  Liszt's. 


Biilow  could  scarcely  have  dreamt,  when  he  described  his  impressions 
of  Henriette  Sontag  in  the  foregoing  letter,  that  this  name  would  lead  to 
such  long-enduring  and  painful  experiences  for  him.  On  the  13th  February 
1852  a  scathing  article  appeared  in  the  Neue  Zeitschrift  fiir  Musik,  in  which 
he  gave  vent  to  his  opinions  on  the  direction  Art  was  taking  in  the  person 
of  Henriette  Sontag.  The  letter  to  his  father,  which  follows  shortly,  shows 
that  what  he  did  was  regarded  with  great  suspicion,  not  merely  by  the 
adherents  of  the  great  star  in  question,  but  also  by  his  parents  and  friends. 
His  father,  in  particular,  appears  to  have  been  temporarily  estranged  from 


*  A  dancer. 


WEIMAI!,  109 

his  son  on  account  of  this  article,  and  hence  the  very  touching  and  pathetic 
letter  hearing  the  signature,  "  Giovanni  penitente." 


TO  THEODOR  UHLIG  (Dresden). 

"Weimar,  22nd  Aj/ril  1852. 
Dear  Friend, 

Do  not  be  angry  with  me  that  I  am  so  late  in  sending 
you  the  score  of  the  '  Fliegender  Hollander,'  for  it  is  not  my  fault.  Our 
baritone  Milde  wanted  to  sing  the  great  duet  in  the  second  act  with  his 
wife  in  public,  and  Liszt  had  lent  him  the  score  for  that  purpose,  that  he 
might  get  the  parts  copied  out. 

We,  and  especially  I,  have  been  dreadfully  sorry,  as  you  may 
imagine,  that  you  could  not  come  to  Weimar  during  Passion  Week,  as  you 
intended. 

I  am  not  feeling  particularly  grand  just  now — I  suffer  so  much 
from  sick  headaches,  and  have  a  fearful  amount  to  do.  The  Benvenuto 
Cellini  articles  have  taken  up  a  great  deal  of  my  time  ;  but  I  had 
promised  Liszt  (who  sends  you  best  greetings)  to  write  them — of  course 
the  fact  that  I  would,  but  not  the  how.  The  opera,  that  is  to  say, 
Berlioz'  music,  has  impressed  me  greatly  and  uncommonly.  I  have 
judged  Berlioz  much  more  favourably,  that  is,  I  have  ascribed  much 
more  merit  to  him  than  Wagner  really  does ;  do  you  think  that  W[agner] 
is  angry  about  this  ?  I  have  not  written  to  him  for  a  long  time,  but  will 
now  do  it  directly.  If  you  are  writing  to  him  before  that,  will  you  be 
so  good  as  to  make  my  excuses  to  him. 

Liszt  wanted  to  go  lately,  on  Good  Friday,  to  Leipzig  with  me,  to 
hear  Bach's  Passion-Music,  but  a  sudden  affection  of  the  eyes  prevented 
him,  and  kept  him  several  days  in  bed.  Now  he  is  well  again.  Joachim 
started  for  London  a  week  ago,  and  will  remain  there,  I  suppose,  three  .to 
four  months. 

Nothing  much  new  in  the  way  of  music,  though  much  that  is 
irritating,  such  as  the  utter  imbecility  of  Haslinger's  'Napoleon  '  and  the 
shallow  pond  of  Hoven's  '  opera.'  There  was  still  a  third  performance  of 
*  Benvenuto.'  Now  we  have  '  Ernani '  and  Schumann's  *  Manfred '  in  pros- 
pect; perhaps  you  will  run  over  for  the  latter.  As  soon  as  possible  we  shall 
have  '  Tannhauser '  again  (as  soon  as  the  Grand  Duchess  comes  to  the 
theatre  for  the  first  time  after  the  Court  mourning) ;  of  course  we  shall 
have  it  in  the  old  arrangement. 


110  HANS  VON   BULOW. 

You  have  pretty  well  done  for  the  Well-known  one — Lobe,*  whose 
identity  was  immediately  guessed  here,  where  he  is  well  known — only 
you  are  a  little  too  serious,  which  he  does  not  really  deserve.  A  review 
of  the  *  Lohengrin'  pianoforte  score  is  coming  out  directly  '  Benvenuto '  is 
finished,  and  in  one  of  the  next  numbers  there  will  again  be  an  "  opinion 
of  the  minority,"  entitled  '  Flotow's  Martha  to  her  public' 

Ritter  passed  through  here  lately  on  his  way  to  Eisenach.  With 
me  he  was  pretty  sociable  until  the  last,  when  he  suddenly  started  off  on 
his  journey  %vithout  saying  a  word.  Towards  Liszt  he  behaved  curiously, 
was  not  at  all  conciliatory,  in  which  he  did  wrong.  I  am  curious  to  know 
what  he  is  going  to  do ;  if  he  remains  idle  it  would  be  a  shame  with  such 
brains. 

It  is  nice  of  you  to  interest  yourself  for  the  Fastlinger :  and  how 
did  she  please  as  Fidelio  1 

The  latest  news  from  W[agner]  (indirect  news)  makes  me  rather 
anxious — but  that  is  nothing.  Why  does  he  suddenly  despair  of  Brendel  ? 
For  once  it  really  won't  do. 

I  hope  soon  to  read  in  the  paper  a  critique  by  you — special 
edification — on  Reissiger's  '  Da '  ('  there,'  pointing  to  the  head)  '  vide ' 
(empty).t 

Thanks  for  the  programme  to  the  '  Tannhauser '  Overture ;  in  case 
you  happen  to  have  a  surplus  of  copies  of  the  two  letters  published  by 
Hinze,  I  should  be  very  much  obliged  for  some. 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Weimar,  23rd  May  1852. 
Dkabbst  Mothbr, 

I  wanted  to  write  you  a  long  and  tidy  letter  for  once, 
and  that  is  what  has  kept  me  so  long  from  answering  your  dear,  kind 
letter  with  a  mere  word  of  thanks ;  I  was  always  hoping  to  find  time  for 
this  and  could  not.  A  heap  of  work  came,  one  thing  on  the  top  of 
another ;  one  week,  for  instance,  was  entirely  taken  up  with  copying  a 
Liszt  score  for  piano  and  orchestra ;  Liszt  had  earnestly  begged  me  to  do 


*  J.  C.  Lobe,  musical  theorist,  composer  (1797-1881).  Uhlig  had  written,  in 
the  Netu  Zeitsehrifi  fur  Mtisik  (No.  14,  Year  I.),  a  smart  reply  to  the  mnsical 
letters  which  had  just  then  appeared,  entitled,  "The  Truth  about  Music  aud 
Musicians.     For  Friends  and  Ck)nnoisseurs.     By  a  Well-known  Person." 

t  Play  on  the  title  of  an  Oratorio,  '  Darid,'  by  Reissiger. 


WEDLOL  111 

tbaat  and  lie  is  so  good  to  me  that  I  ilwajs  set  eweryOnMig  aside  to  fcdfil 
aodi  widies  imaafedbftdty.  A  second  pieee  of  wcxk,  mare  inteiestiiig  than 
the  fizs^  {(Aived,  but  it  was  one  vhidi  todk  np  mete  time  because  it 
deanndBd  mam  thoi^iL  Beiiiazf  opaa.  was  to  be  given  once  mote  this 
nrwCTi,  and  as  I  agreed  with  lisif  s  o^nian  as  to  the  WBelewaeifiB  of  the 
last  act,  which  onlj  weanes  pec^le  and  sends  than  to  sleep,  he  proposed 
that /should  make  the  neeeesaiy  enta,  as  wdl  as  the  sl^it  ahytations 
in  mmic  and  text  req[iiiied  hj  tibese ;  I  disdhaignl  mjself  of  this  task  to 
liat^  satisfaelian,  although  ths  was  my  JbM  appeatanee  as  a  xh jnier 
of  blank  Tene. 

At  ]»t  it  came  about  that  the  P^nneesB  gare  me  to  imdezstand  that 
I  m^it  write  a  few  wotds  on  LtsEfs  'Chf^an.'  I  hare  been  aoeostomed 
to  be  a  ham  eafenffer,  and  bad  theRf(»e  fizst  to  se&  mjself  to  read  it,  fw 
which  I  had  not  pverioody  foond  time.  As  I  have  now  finidieil  with  it 
I  amd  joa  the  botdk,  whidi  will  pedbaps  exdte  and  intevKt  joa  more 
than  it  did  me.  AMmngh  I  donbt  whether  anjone  eonld  hare  haMui^id 
the  snbgeet  mane  smtafaly,  at  ertai  more  podticalty,  than  lisEt  hv  done:, 
yet  these  aie  many  things  in  it  which  are  not  qmba  sympathetic  to  me, 
especially  beeanse  they  make  me  think  that  the  Princeas  has  had  a  hand 
in  it.  That  does  not  prevent  me  ftam  haTii^  foond  much  beantr  in  it^ 
such  as  lisit  alfOBB  eonld  gnre  to  it. 

I  sod  jon  with  this  the  mannsmpt  for  I^ore  foom  Joadiim. 
Afiber  I  bad  cwmplained  to  yon  in  my  last  lelta  that  list  did  Teiy  little 
with  me  in  dm  way  of  piano-pfayin^  I  gave  myadf  the  lie  only  a  few 
days  aficnruds.  That  is  often  the  way  wiUi  me,  and  it  makes  me 
almost  a&aid  to  emteas  myadf  definite^  in  letlezs  about  what  conoems 
me;  it  is  like  taking  one's  nmbida  vdiea  one  goes  a  walk.  lisit 
has  aDowedme  and  his  other  pupil  (from  Monidt}— the  third  is  stodyii^ 
mnsical  theorf  at  TBsmarh  wHfc  the  OigMiist Rohmstedt — to  play  agreat 
deal  under  his  direetian  ;  he  baa  amde  me  study  the  great  B  flat  major 
Sonata  of  BeeOiovan,  whieh  I  play  not  at  all  badly— in  the  Ad^io 
LintpBaisedme  tremaadondy, — also  Webei'a  *  Caneeztstiiek '  wiiii  aonm 
added  oOiBel^  and  Beedmvc^  'Fantasa.'  Sezt  time  I  shall  play  him 
the  fint  BMnreiMnt  of  the  £  Flat  major  Coneeito.  My  playing  has 
latd^  yetj  much  dialled  fat  the  better;  my  fingen  are  gndaaify 
guningtiiat  elasticity  inidiieh  a  good  tondi  millj  mniintn, bfcimm  it 
nsskes  one  capable  of  girin^  eveiy  powsihle  *— "-n^,  and  I  find  UaffB 
m^hod  more  and  more  to  be  the  onty  fnily  aitistie  and  pnctied<me. 
I  orrawnnal^  go  so  for  as  to  be  satisfied  with  myad^  and  'I  think  I 
flhaD,  in  any  caae^  bdoa^  to  Um  better  ones  among  p— »i^^L 

How — the  moat  isipartaat  mattei^  namdy  to  tell  yon  about  the 
Musical  Festival,  whkh  is  to  be  hdi  at  BaDastedt  on  Om  35th  and 


112  HANS   YON   BULOW. 

26th  Juno.  I  shall  have  to  go  there  a  week  beforehand  as  minUtre 
plenipotentaire.  Could  not  you  manage  to  be  present  at  my  first  great 
debut  as  a  pianist  ?  In  addition  to  this,  the  concert  and  Liszt's  con- 
ducting will  be  specially  interesting  in  themselves.  On  the  two  days 
the  following  works  are  to  be  given  :  the  Overture  to  '  Tannhauser,'  and 
'  King  Alfred,'  Mendelssohn's  '  Walpurgisnacht,'  Beethoven's  '  Ninth,' 
Berlioz'  *  Harold  Symphony,'  Wagner's  '  Liebesmahl  der  Apostel '  (Last 
Supper),  Duet  from  the  '  Fliegender  Hollander,'  Liszt's  music  to  a  poem 
by  the  Duchess  of  Orleans,  a  Violin  Concerto  by  David,  the  first 
Finale  from  '  Euryanthe,'  and  Beethoven's  '  Choral  Fantasia '  for  piano 
and   orchestra.     Besides  this  last  piece  I  may  also  perhaps  play  the 

*  Midsummer  Night's  Dream '  (Liszt's  transcription,   a   solo),  and   the 

*  Tannhauser '  Overture,  which,  when  people  have  heard  it  by  the  orchestra, 
will  be  a  grateful  work  for  both  Liszt  and  me.  Once  more — it  would 
be  very  charming  of  you  to  give  me  your  presence  at  this  Festival ;  do 
try  to  arrange  it,  and  perhaps  you  will  bring  Isidore  with  you.  Then 
let  me  know  soon,  so  that  I  may  get  rooms  for  you,  for  there  will  be 
heaps  of  people.  The  printed  song  I  am  sending  you  herewith  is 
published  in  an  album,  and  appears  in  good  company,  with  Liszt, 
Joachim  and  others. 

The  spring  has  made  me  much  livelier  again,  and  I  feel  better, 
both  bodily  and  mentally,  than  in  the  winter  months,  which  have  this 
time  been  very  sad  ones  for  me. 

I  have  altered  my  outside  life  here  in  one  respect  for  the  better, 
as  I  think  ;  with  a  sudden  bold  resolve  I  have  given  up  the  '  Erbprinz,' 
in  spite  of  the  fact  that  I  can  only  pay  my  debts  there  little  by  little.  I 
now  dine  at  mid-day  elsewhere  with  Cossmann,  where  it  costs  me  only  a 
little  more  than  half  what  it  used  to  do,  and  the  fare  is  simpler  and  more 
wholesome.  Indeed  Cossmann  forms  my  chief  society  now ;  he  is  a 
quiet,  soothing  man  of  good  French  n)anners,  clever,  but  somewhat 
apathetic.  The  end  of  the  theatre  season,  when  Cossmann  goes  to 
Baden  and  Liszt  accompanies  the  Princess  to  Carlsbad,  will  probably 
change  much  of  this.  That  time  will  be  shortly  after  the  Music- 
Festival.  My  trade  of  schoolmaster  goes  on  pretty  successfully.  My 
two  pupils  are  really  getting  on  with  me  ;  I  am  also  much  adored  by 
them.  The  second  is  the  niece  of  an  English  lady,  who  is  a  friend  of 
Liszt,  and  he  specially  begged  me  to  yield  to  the  earnest  wish  of  the 
aunt.  The  young  lady,  like  all  English  girls,  has  a  very  negative 
musical  talent,  and  plays  wrong  and  out  of  time  with  true  religious 
fervour ;  so  there  is  certainly  not  much  to  be  done.  The  aunt  has  the 
extraordinary  idea  that  her  niece  has  a  decided  musical  talent,  and  would 
be  inconsolable  if  she  were  told  the  contrary  and  robbed  of  her  belief ; 
so  I  try  to  do  my  best  with  unspeakable  amiability. 


AVEIMAR,  113 

My  unpopularity  here  is  unbounded ;  I  rejoice  in  it  to  the  utmost, 
because  it  is  a  sort  of  filial  unpopularity  to  that  of  Liszt,  and  the  saying, 
"  qu'ils  me  haissent,  pourvu  qu'ils  me  ci-aignent  "  is  applicable  here.  A 
caricature  has  even  been  circulated  here,  in  which  Liszt  figures  as  Don 
Quixote  and  I  as  Sancho  Panza. 

Liszt  took  me  lately  with  Cossmann  and  Mangold  to  Jena  to  see 
Stahr,  who  is  settled  there,  and  is  very  unwell. 

Please  write  to  me  very  soon,  I  do  beg,  or  else  let  Isidore  write. 
She  has  plenty  of  time  and  I  have  so  little,  and  as  she  is  so  fond  of  me 
she  should  give  me,  with  her  pen,  more  frequent  opportunity  of  grate- 
fully acknowledging  this. 

In  any  case  I  hope  to  be  able  to  have  a  talk  with  you  by  word  of 
mouth  before  so  very  long.  My  head  is  so  full  of  all  sorts  of  different 
things  that  I  had  great  trouble  to  disentangle  to  some  degree  all  the 
things  I  wanted  to  say  to  you. 

Liszt  promised  me  that  he  would  write  to  you ;  has  he  perhaps  done 

so  t     On  the  other  hand.  Countess may  wait  a  long  time.    "  Qu'elle 

s'en  aille  au  diable,"  were  Liszt's  very  own  words,  which  he  uttered  with 
comical  anger  when  I  gave  him  my  information.  .  .  . 

Once  more,  do  not  be  vexed  at  the  long  and  unmerited  delay,  and 
take  best  thanks  for  your  loving  thoughts  of  me. 


TO  HIS  FATHEE. 

Weimak,  2otJi  May  1852. 

Dearest  Father, 

If  you  have  a  spark  of  affection  left  for  a  son  who, 
though  his  actions  speak  against  him,  has  never  for  a  moment  ceased  to 
think  of  you  with  the  deepest  love,  I  do  beg  you,  above  everything  in 
the  world,  not  to  be  angry  with  me  any  longer  for  the  unhappy  time 
now  (thank  the  gods)  past,  but  to  forgive  and  forget.  Perhaps,  without 
this,  the  confession  of  all  the  misery  I  have  gone  through  will  soften 
you  towards  me.  Though  I  was  quite  conscious  that  I  owed  you  this 
confession,  yet  I  have  put  it  off  all  this  time,  partly  from  a  certain 
timidity  at  liaving  to  recapitulate  every  little  inward  vexation  of  my  own, 
and  really  also  from  want  of  the  power  to  look  at  my  own  affairs  as 
dispassionately  as  if  they  were  somebody's  else's.  Once  more,  grant  me 
this  earnest  request ;  do  not  be  angry  with  me  any  longer,  spare  me  all 
reproaches,  for  it  is  just  these  that  I  should  find  it  most  hard  to  bear, 

H 


114  HANS    VON  BtJLOW. 

and  that  would,  by  their  severity,  thwart  all  my  endeavours  to  regain 
the  happiness  which  I  have  almost  lost. 

That  scandal  which  came  to  your  ears  about  the  famous  (or  in- 
famous) Sontag  article  was  undoubtedly  the  real  beginning  of  unforeseen, 
and  even  almost  unexpected  consequences.  I  send  you  the  article  here- 
with :  you  can  see  for  yourself  how  the  momentary  excitement  of  a 
lively  indignation  dictated  it,  and  how  entirely  without  calculation  it  was 
written.  I  can  assure  you  that  our  astonishment  was  great  when  such  a 
storm  was  raised  against  me  from  all  sides,  above  all  from  Leipzig,  when 
I  was  recognised  as  the  author  of  the  unexpected  "  voice  of  the  minority," 
striking  so  mercilessly  at  one  who  was  the  idol  of  the  hour  to  an  irra- 
tional multitude. 

Of  course  calumnious  reports  were  also  spread;  Liszt  was  accused 
of  being  the  real  author,  and  this  authorship  was  ascribed  to  a  petty 
revenge. 

Had  Liszt  known  of  my  intention  he  would  at  all  events  have  tried 
to  dissuade  me  from  it ;  but  he  did  not  see  the  article  till  it  was  in  print, 
and  too  late  to  recommend  me  to  write  more  moderately.  As  regards 
the  calumny  which  touched  himself  he  said  nothing,  and  thereby  gave 
me  a  lesson  and  an  example  of  how  I  ought  to  behave  towards  injuries  to 
myself.  By  this  calm  and  resolute  silence  I  have  been  able  to  preserve  a 
demeanour  that  is  in  my  favour,  and  I  am  sure  I  have  thus  avoided  many 
unpleasantnesses.  I  have  made  a  collection  of  the  most  violent  attacks 
in  the  papers  here,  and  from  Leipzig,  etc. ;  if  you  were  to  read  those  you 
would  understand  in  what  a  state  of  perpetual  excitement  and  embitter- 
ment  the  long  dragging  on  of  these  affairs  has  placed  me  ;  though  at  the 
same  time  I  did  receive  a  few  very  flattering,  but  not  very  comforting, 
signs  of  recognition  of  my  courage.  Not  merely  people  such  as  Robert 
Franz,  Wagner,  Herwegh,  but  even  quite  respectable  Philistines,  have 
given  me  to  understand  that  they  entirely  approved  of  what  I  had  done. 

But  now  to  the  worst  consequences  which  my  venturesomeness  has 
entailed.  Sontag  was  foolish  enough  to  lay  such  tremendous  weight  on 
my  opinion  that  she,  together  with  her  mother,  her  husband,  etc.,  had 
not  anything  better  to  do  than  to  spread  the  affair  abroad — unconscious 
that  she  was  thereby  making  the  best  possible  propaganda  against  herself. 
As  soon  as  she  came  to  Dresden  she  gave  the  reins  to  her  anger  by 
heaping  up  the  strongest  invectives  against  my  humble  self  at  all  the 
houses  where  she  visited.  So  it  was  not  long  before  it  came  to  my 
mother's  ears  from  various  quarters,  and  you  can  imagine  that  she  was 
not  particularly  pleased  about  it.  Spnre  me  the  details,  the  remembrance 
of  which  is  even  now  painful  to  me.  Only  the  principal  thing  :  I  should, 
really  and  truly,  have  had  nothing  to  live  on,  had  not  my  piano-teaching 


WTIIMAR.  115 

here  brought  me  in  a  few  thalers,  I  will  only  mention  that,  amongst 
other  things,  I  had  to  do  entirely  without  supper,  and  that  my  clothes 
had  got  into  the  most  neglected  condition.  I  was  for  the  first  time  in 
real  want ;  of  course  I  would  not  borrow  from  anybody,  because  I  had 
not  the  remotest  idea  when  I  should  ever  be  able  to  pay  back  again  ;  and 
besides  this,  my  most  intimate  friends  were  none  of  them  in  a  position  to 
lend  me  anything.  Before  I  would  have  asked  Liszt  to  lend  me  any- 
thing— well,  I  really  don't  know  what  I  would  not  have  tried  first !  So 
I  was  obliged  to  pawn  what  little  I  possessed,  and  consequently  I  am  so 
placed  to-day  that  if  anyone  asks  me  "  What's  o'clock  1 "  (a  clock)  I 
can  only  answer  them  by  your  joke,  "  a  measure  of  time." 

And  up  to  the  present  time  I  have  not  been  able  to  recover  my  old 
sense  of  humour,  of  which  I  used  to  possess  a  fair  amount,  but  which, 
during  that  inauspicious  time,  has  been  conspicuous  by  its  absence. 
You  really  cannot  imagine  into  what  a  state  of  complete  depression  and 
despairing  indiflference  I  had  fallen  at  that  time.  The  feeling  of  wretched 
abandonment  enervated  me  as  much,  physically,  as  it  paralysed  my  mental 
powers,  so  that  the  work  which  was  waiting  to  be  done  cost  me  immense 
efforts  to  do ;  for  I  ?iave  worked,  notwithstanding,  and  can  show  proofs 
of  my  industry. 

The  reason  I  did  not  write  to  you  at  that  time  was  partly  what  I 
have  already  mentioned ;  and  if  the  necessity  of  confessing  my  position — 
for  I  was  so  down  in  the  world  that  I  could  not  have  withstood  the 
temptation  of  asking  you  to  help  me — kept  me  from  writing  to  you,  it 
was  because  it  seemed  to  me  that  it  would  be  the  height  of  unworthiness 
on  my  part  even  to  appear  to  fulfil  my  duty  of  writing  to  my  father  only 
when  I  was  constrained  to  ask  him  for  help. 

No  doubt  this  is  all  very  incoherent  and  uninteresting  for  you  to  read, 
but  my  moral  power  is  still  so  weak  that  I  am  not  in  a  condition  to 
arrange  my  confused  thoughts  and  write  them  in  an  orderly  manner,  and 
must  be  satisfied  with  having  conquered  a  stupidity  which,  I  daresay, 
will  seem  less  inexplicable  to  you  when  you  have  seen  what  a  frame  of 
mind  I  was  in.  I  hope  you  will  at  least  be  willing  to  see,  by  my  letter 
today,  which  I  have  been  trying  to  write  for  nearly  a  fortnight,  how 
much  I  long  for  a  return  to  the  old  relations  between  us.  You  may  be 
sure  that  the  interruption  of  these  has  been  much  harder  for  me  to  bear, 
all  alone  as  I  was,  than  probably  for  you.  In  case  you  are  angry  with 
my  letter,  and  give  vent  to  your  feelings,  may  Louise  have  the  happy 
idea  of  making  Willi  use  his  promising  lungs  to  drown  your  voice,  and 
to  be  an  honour  to  his  musical  brother  by  coming  to  his  aid  with  such 
timely  harmony. 

Now  to  the   most  important  things  connected  with  my  present  or 


116  HANS  VOX  BCLOW. 

my  immediate  future.  On  the  22nd  and  23id  of  tliis  month  there  is 
going  to  be  a  grand  Musical  Festival  at  Ballenstedt,  under  Liszt's  con- 
ducting. I  shall  make  my  debut  on  that  occasion  as  a  pianist  and  as  a 
pupil  of  Liszt,  for  the  first  time  before  such  a  lar^e  public,  and  shall 
play,  besides  some  solo  pieces,  Beethoven's  '  Choral  Fantasia,'  for  piano, 
chorus  and  orchestra,  a  work  of  the  composer's  later  period  that  is  but 
little  known  and  that  makes  a  great  effect. 

My  piano-playing  has  latterly  made  substantial  progress ;  I  have 
gained  in  elasticity  and  a  certain  virtuoso  chic,  which  was  formerly 
entirely  wanting.  The  great  mastership  of  Liszt  —  apart  from  his 
individual  appearance  and  personality — rt-sts  principally  on  his  marvel- 
lously expansive  and  manifold  power  of  expressing  outwardly  what  he 
feels  inwardly ;  not  merely  in  the  perception  and  grasp  of  a  musical 
work,  but  in  the  way  he  can  reproduce  it  outwardly,  the  extraordinarily 
faithful  embodiment  of  the  spirituaL  Nothing  is  further  from  him  than 
calculated  effects  ;  his  genius  as  an  artist  consists  chiefly  in  his  certainty 
of  the  effect  he  gives  so  brilliantly  at  every  i>orformance.  This  point 
in  Liszt  seems  to  me  the  most  worthy  because  the  most  j»ossible  of 
imitation,  and  1  have  tried  for  some  time,  and  not  without  result,  to  copy 
him  somewhat  in  this. 

I  am  very  much  delighted  to  find  that  Liszt  intends  to  spend  the 
summer  here,  and  will  only  be  away  at  most  four  weeks,  and  that  not 
till  August,  when  he  accompanies  the  Princess  to  Carlsbad.  As  he  is 
devoting  a  great  deal  of  time  to  me  and  another  young  and  rather 
talented  pupil  from  Munich,  I  can  safely  reckon  on  being  set  free  next 
December  to  start  on  my  first  predatory  virtuoso-tour  to  Vienna  and 
Pert. 

I  have  been  composing  very  little,  although  I  have  not  been  entirely 
idle  in  that  respect.  But,  on  the  other  hand,  I  have  written  several 
things  for  the  musical  press  which  are  not  at  all  bad,  according  to  what 
Liszt  and  others  say.  My  life  otherwise  has  been  of  the  simplest;  I 
have  been  in  no  society  whatever,  except  that  of  other  artists.  Two 
la^lies  whom  I  teach  adore  me,  both  for  ray  talent  and  for  my  personal 
amiability,  in  which  I  have  made  great  progress.  However  1  don't  care 
about  it.  On  the  other  hand,  I  do  care  very  much  indeed  to  hear  soon 
from  you  that  you  forgive  and  forget.     Meanwhile, 

Your  loving  son, 

GlOV&HNI    PSNITSNTK. 


W.Streckfuss  pirudt  1855 


Gra-/urG  MeisenbachRiiTarth&Co. 


^-Z^^^ 


WEIMAR.  117 

TO  HIS  FATHER. 

Weimar,  28th  June  1852. 

Dearest  Father, 

Only  today  have  I  got  back,  the  last  of  the  Weimar 
company,  bodily  and  mentally  refreshed  by  the  glorious  and  never-to-be- 
forgotten  days  I  have  spent  at  the  Musical  Festival  at  Ballenstedt.  The 
first  thing  I  am  taking  in  hand  here  is  to  answer  your  letter,  which  I 
received  shortly  after  my  arrival  at  Ballenstedt,  when  I  was  just  in  the 
most  delightful  excitement  of  having  all  kinds  of  things  to  do.  I  thank 
you  from  my  heart  for  your  willingness  to  forget  the  sad  suspension  of 
our  happy  relationship  which  lasted  for  a  while,  and  your  readiness  to 
have  some  trust  once  more  in  my  heart !  It  now  lies  with  me  to  justify 
this  trust,  and  I  shall  always  be  fully  conscious  of  it.  You  may  truly 
believe  that,  in  spite  of  appearances  being  against  me,  I  am  so  far  from 
all  indifference  towards  you  that,  on  the  contrary,  I  feel  myself  much 
nearer  to  you  than  I  did  in  earlier  years.  I  have  reached  an  age  which 
enables  me  to  understand  you  better  than  I  could  formerly,  and  to  find 
many  points  of  contact  with  you  which  formerly  were  not  visible  to  me. 
In  many  things  I  now  have  very  similar  views  to  yours ;  and,  where  we  do 
not  have  the  same  sympathies,  I  feel,  with  the  warmest  gratitude,  that  you 
come  forward  towards  me  and  affectionately  try  to  soften  and  to  lessen 
the  opposition,  so  that  I  feel  that  it  is  not  only  my  duty,  but  also  my 
natural  desire,  to  do  my  part  also.  I  feel  the  real  need  of  communicating 
often  with  you,  and  I  need  ouly  to  follow  the  first  promptings  when  they 
come  to  me.  I  feel  so  happy  and  pleasantly  excited  after  the  stay  at 
Ballenstedt  that  I  shall  become  much  more  expansive  than  I  ever  was 
before ;  it  is  not  in  my  nature  to  be  so  under  depression  and  wretched- 
ness, such  as  have  been  my  companions  here  in  the  time  that  is  past. 

I  will  begin  at  once  to  tell  you  all  about  Ballenstedt.  Perhaps  you 
will  have  already  heard  from  Isidore  that  I  did  meet  her  and  mamma 
there.  It  was  a  meeting  I  very  much  wished  for.  JSIamma,  in  the  society 
of  the  excellent  families  v.  Herder  and  Siegsfeld,  was  in  a  pretty  forgiv- 
ing frame  of  mind,  for  the  after-effects  of  the  Past  were  not  yet  extin- 
guished, and  the  old  mistrust  of  the  success  and  the  expectations  of  my 
musical  career,  increased  as  they  were  by  the  scandal  I  made  as  a  writer, 
was  still  deep-rooted  in  her.  Liszt,  to  whom  she  wrote  some  time  ago, 
about  the  same  time  you  did,  had  not  wished  and  had  not  been  able 
to  answer  her,  and  was  therefore  very  much  pleased  to  be  able  to  talk  to 
her  personally  at  last,  and  to  explain  the  necessary  things  to  her.  He 
has  therefore  quieted  her  all  round  to  some  extent ;  at  least,  he  has  done 


118  HANS  VON   BULOW. 

SO  much  that  she  has  been  tranquillized  by  him  as  she  could  have  been 
by  none  other.  That  could  not  have  been  done  in  a  letter.  Liszt's  per- 
sonal amiability  contributed  its  part  towards  this  also.  By  his  persuasion 
she  remained  for  the  Musical  Festival,  which  she  had  at  first  declined 
to  do,  from  motives  of  economy ;  and  I  had  the  satisfaction  of  seeing 
that  my  performances  and  their  success  gave  her  pleasure.  Liszt  was 
thoroughly  satisfied  with  my  playing  at  the  concert,  as  well  as  at  the  Court, 
where  we  were  invited  to  supper  on  the  second  day  (Wednesday),  through 
the  very  friendly  and  amiable  Hofmarschall  v.  Siegsfeld.  The  Duchess 
and  her  sister,  the  Princess  of  Holstein,  to  whom  I  had  been  presented  a 
couple  of  days  before  at  a  musical  coffee-party  at  Frau  v.  Siegsfeld's,*  were 
very  amiable  to  me.  As  Liszt  absolutely  refused  to  play  anything,  I  was 
obliged  to  come  forward  after  supper  as  his  official  pupil,  and  I  played 
for  about  an  hour  to  the  people,  who  really  behaved  extremely  well,  and 
listened  with  great  interest.  Liszt  very  much  commended  my  sureness 
and  unconstrainedness,  and  the  extremely  individual  character  of  my 
performance,  which,  as  he  said,  had  surprised  him,  and  had  put  before 
him  the  prospect  of  my  self-dependence  sooner  than  he  had  expected. 
You  can  well  imagine  that  this  praise  has  made  me  feel  very  happy  and 
hopeful  for  the  future.  Mamma  and  Isidore,  whom  I  found  not  looking 
very  well,  took  their  departure  on  Thursday  at  noon,  stayed  one  night  in 
Leipzig,  and  arrived  in  Munich  the  day  after,  whence,  after  a  short  stay, 
they  will  go  straight  to  one  of  the  German  baths.  I  hope  that  the  favourable 
impression  which  my  debut  in  Ballenstedt  made  on  them  will  last,  and  act 
as  a  counterpoise  to  the  other  doubts  and  disagreements.  Unfortunately 
I  was  hardly  able  to  see  anything  of  Isidore,  for  I  was  excessively  occupied 
as  Liszt's  adjutant — that  is  to  say,  his  musical  adjutant — for  Raff",  who 
left  a  couple  of  days  before  Liszt  and  myself,  had  attended  capitally  to 
everything  else.  The  whole  Festival  may  be  regarded  as  a  particularly 
brilliant  one,  considering  its  impromptu  character ;  for  a  week  before  it 
took  place  the  whole  undertaking  was  still  uncertain.  Liszt  really  worked 
wonders;  in  three  days'  rehearsals  everything  was  in  trim,  and  the  orchestra, 
which  was  brought  together  from  all  parts,  and  the  members  of  which 
were  all  strange  to  one  another — chorus  and  orchestra  numbered  some  300 
persons — was  so  thoroughly  inducted  into  the  work  that  it  seemed 
as  if  they  all  belonged  to  one  Society :  Liszt's  personality  in  conducting 
had  inspired  them  and  carried  them  away.  The  audience,  it  is  true, 
numbered  only  800  to  1000. 

The  entrepren<iur,  an  hotel-keeper,  a  well-educated  and  very  decent 
fellow,  who  was  indeed  quite  ruined,  but  who  nevertheless  fulfilled  every 

*  Frau  V.  Siegsfeld,  a  granddaughter  of  Herder. 


WEIMAR.  119 

duty  he  had  undertaken  towards  those  who  were  taking  part,  had  acted 
rather  unpractically  through  the  whole  affair,  and  had  not  chosen  the 
right  moment  to  try  to  weaken  the  effect  of  a  couple  of  unfavourable, 
spiteful  articles  that  had  appeared  in  the  paper.  Such  an  article,  for 
instance,  had  kept  Stern's  Gesangverein  from  coming,  after  they  had 
firmly  promised  their  assistance.  Old  Schneider  in  Dessau  also  played 
us  a  shabby  trick.  The  orchestra  there  had  promised  its  co-operation, 
and  Schneider  had  openly  placed  them  at  our  disposal ;  but  as  he  was 
extremely  indignant  because  they  would  neither  perform  his  *  Weltgericht ' 
(Last  Judgment),  nor  any  other  composition  of  his,  nor  divide  the  con- 
ducting between  Liszt  and  himself,  he  privately  got  every  individual 
member  of  his  orchestra  to  sign  a  round-robin  to  the  efi^ect  that,  out  of 
devotion  to  him,  none  of  them  would  take  part  in  the  Festival  unless  he 
went  with  them.  So,  then,  not  one  of  them  came.  The  orchestra  was 
composed  of  the  Bernburg,  Sondershausen,  and  the  best  part  of  the  Weimar 
orchestras,  and  individual  musicians  from  the  neighbourhood  were  also 
pressed  into  the  service.  The  vocal  forces  had  been  imported — the  vocal 
Societies  of  Bernburg  and  Cothen,  and,  above  all,  the  Leipzig  Students' 
Vocal  Society,  the  Pauliners,  who  had  come  over  under  the  leadership  of 
their  music-director  Langer,  sixty  in  number,  all  gifted  with  fresh, 
beautiful  voices.  Robert  Franz  from  Halle  had  also  brought  a  chorus  of 
thirty  ladies  and  gentlemen,  in  addition  to  which  stray  singers  came  from 
Berlin  and  Leipzig.  The  performances  went  off  extremely  successfully ; 
the  programme  met  with  uncommon  approbation,  in  spite  of  its  very 
marked  tendency.  The  second  concert  —  I  send  you  the  programme 
herewith — did  not  take  place  till  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  as  the 
forenoon  had  to  be  used  for  rehearsal.  In  spite  of  the  great  fatigue, 
everything  went  like  clockwork  !  The  very  limited  time  for  rehearsal  of 
the  '  Berlioz '  Symphony  only  allowed  of  the  two  middle  movements  being 
given.  On  the  other  hand,  after  the  '  Walpurgisnacht '  there  was  a  lively 
demand  for  the  repetition  of  the  'Tannhauser'  Overture,  which  thus 
formed  the  first  and  last  links  of  the  chain.  The  effect  was  immense. 
Liszt,  who  was  welcomed  both  times  with  flourish  of  trumpets  and 
applause,  received  at  the  end  all  the  flowers  of  all  the  ladies  present, 
which  were  thrown  at  him. 

Besides  playing  my  Fantasia,  which  was  almost  the  most  warmly 
applauded  of  any  of  the  solo  pieces,  I  had  also  to  help  in  the  '  Orpheus ' 
scene,  by  playing  the  rather  important  harp  part  on  the  piano,  owing  to 
the  indisposition  of  Fraulein  Spohr,*  the  niece  of  the  Kapellmeister, 
and  I  had  also  to  accompany  the  '  Liebesmahl  der  Apostel,'  in  order  to  give 

*  Rosalie  Spohr,  afterwards  married  to  Count  Sauerma. 


120  HANS  VON   BULOW. 

a  little  support  here  and  there  to  the  difficult  vocal  part  (without  accom- 
paniment), so  as  to  enable  them  to  keep  strictly  in  tune. 

I  also  helped  in  the  teaching  of  this  work,  and  played  the  big  drum 
in  Kaflf's  Overture.  I  nearly  got  in  a  rage  about  this  afterwards,  when  I 
heard  that  Meyerbeer  had  once  done  the  same  service  for  Cherubini  in 
one  of  his  operas. 

We  had  a  very  lively  time  at  Ballenstedt.  Kroll,  Kaff,  Pruckner 
(my  fellow-student  as  pianist  in  Liszt's  school)  and  I  had  a  nice  large 
room,  all  four  of  us  together,  close  to  Liszt's.  Of  course  our  expenses 
there  were  paid  for  us,  and  we  also  had  our  journey  there  free.  But  the 
Herders  and  Siegsfelds  did  more  than  anybody  else  to  make  us  enjoy 
ourselves,  and  they  have  the  largest  share  of  all  our  pleasant  recollections 
of  Ballenstedt.  They  gave  us  dinners  and  parties,  and,  above  all,  made 
things  so  comfortable  for  us  that  we  felt  quite  at  home  there,  because  we 
really  were  so.  And  for  me  there  was  the  special  satisfaction  that  both 
ladies,  who  stand  alone  in  their  amiability,  are  democrats  and  Feuer- 
bachers  !  Frau  v.  Siegsfeld  sends  you  warm  greetings.  She  has  honoured 
me  by  presenting  me  with  Feuerbach's  latest  book,  which  lay  on  her 
table,  as  a  remembrance. 

Liszt  was  unfortunately  obliged  to  return  to  Weimar  on  Wednesday 
night.  His  mother,  who  had  come  to  pay  him  a  visit,  fell  downstairs  in 
his  absence,  and  sustained  a  fracture  which  at  first  appeared  dangerous, 
but  now  it  is  considered  certain  that  she  will  soon  be  all  right  again. 

Kroll  and  I  remained  three  days  longer  in  B[allenstedt],  as  we  had 
also  promised  to  arrange  a  small  private  concert  for  Nehse,  which  there- 
fore took  place  on  the  Saturday  morning  before  a  very  few  people. 
Nehse  might  have  had  an  audience  of  200 ;  his  great  awkwardness  and 
apathy  ruined  his  chances. 

On  Thursday  there  was  another  soiree  at  the  Siegsfelds',  for  which 
I  had  arranged  the  programme,  and  at  which  I  had  to  do  duty  as  accom- 
panist to  the  singers,  who  are  extremely  fond  of  me  in  that  capacity.  On 
Friday  we  made  an  excursion  to  the  Waldkater  and  Kessel,  not  far  from 
the  Rosstrappe — the  Siegsfelds,  Herders,  Mildes,  Spohrs,  Schreck,  etc. 
The  weather  was  favourable,  and  it  was  a  delightful  after-celebration  of 
the  Festival. 

What  also  especially  enchained  me  to  Ballenstedt  was  a  small  love- 
passion.  I  had  not  been  in  love  for  such  a  very  long  time  that  it 
possessed  all  the  charm  of  novelty  for  me,  and  put  me  into  a  disposition 
which,  if  it  should  last  for  a  while — which  is  possible — might  be  of  great 
use  to  me  musically  in  the  coming  time.  As  I  am  perfectly  contented 
with  my  subjective  inclination,  you  need  not  be  afraid  that  I  shall  go 
and  do  something  stupid ;  quite  the  contrary. 


■WEIMAR.  121 

Liszt  starts  next  Thursday  for  Brunswick,  for  the  Musical  Festival 
there,  which  Miiller  and  Litolff  will  conduct.  I  am  not  going  with  him, 
notwithstanding  that  I  might  do  it  if  it  were  necessary.  I  shall  remain 
here,  and  try  to  recover  by  hard  work  from  all  my  knocking  about. 


Is  my  style  still  so  dreadful?  I  will  really  take  pains  to  improve 
it,  and  am  grateful  to  you  for  your  warning.  I  can  quite  well  bear  the 
strongest  expression  of  blame  which  comes  so  thoroughly  from  the  heart. 


TO   HIS  FATHER. 

[Weihar,  end  of  July  1852.] 

Dearest  Father, 

My  heartiest  good  wishes  and  my  most  brotherly  welcome 
to  the  new  citizen  of  this  world,  who,  I  hope,  will  be  as  strong  a  fellow 
as  Willi  promises  to  become,  and  whose  existence  is  a  happiness  to  me 
for  many  reasons.  Firstly,  because  I  gain  a  new  object  for  my  brotherly- 
uncledom,  from  which  I  expect  much  honour  and  pleasure,  so  far  as  I 
may  be  called  to  have  to  do  with  him ;  and  secondly,  because  the  world 
is  now  the  richer  by  two  baronial  democrats. 


I  already  gave  you  a  hint  in  my  last  letter  of  my  present  lyrical 
mood,  so  I  need  only  add  that  it  is  happily  not  merely  a  mood,  but  is  of 
a  productive  nature.  I  am  at  present  writing  a  dozen  songs  (text  by 
Heine,  Sternau,  and  Petbfy,  in  the  translation  of  Szarvady  and  Moritz 
Hauptmann),  eight  of  which  are  already  done.  Liszt  is  very  much  in- 
terested in  them.  His  criticism  is  of  the  greatest  advantage  to  me ;  he 
discovers  at  once  every  intention,  and  then  knows  not  only  how  to  dis- 
cover any  chance  contradiction  between  thought  and  form,  but  how  to 
suggest  the  simplest  and  best  means  of  putting  it  right.  Hence  he  is, 
by  his  own  experience,  the  best  and  most  impressive  adviser  as  to  the 
observance  of  simplicity  and  clearness  in  the  piano  accompaniment — he 
who  formerly  did  the  most  important  things  in  exactly  the  contrary 
direction.  His  opinion  of  my  songs  was  that  they  are  "  very  beautiful, 
very  much  from  the  heart  {sehr  innerlich),  finely  conceived,  and  of  a 
very  original  and  individual  colouring " — an  opinion  which  has  pleased 
me  more,  in  silence,  than  any  praise  that  has  yet  appeared  in  the  papers. 


122  HANS   VON   BULOW. 

It  is,  especially,  a  great  comfort  to  me  that  he  allows  that  I  have  indi- 
viduality, because,  according  to  my  theory,  it  is  only  a  very  marked 
individuality,  especially  in  Art,  which  as  such  (eo  ipso)  has  a  justification 
for  its  existence  in  respect  to  artistic  creation.     Besides  the  songs,  I  am 
already  sketching  my  Overture  to  '  Romeo  and  Juliet.'     About  that,  i.e. 
about   my   plan,   which  has   been  very  much   corrected  by  R[ichard] 
W[agner] — my  first  was  too  abstractly  philosophical,  too  wanting   in 
clearness — more  some  other  time ;  and  I  am  collecting  material  for  a  big 
Pianoforte  Trio.     I  have  also  in  hand  two  concert  paraphrases  on  pieces 
from  '  Lohengrin  '  and  '  Tannhauser,'  which,  through  Liszt's  mediation, 
will  be  published  by  Hartel  in  Leipzig,  and,  as  a  smaller  auil  less  taxing 
piece  of  work,  the  arrangement  of  the  piano  edition  of  Wagner's  version 
of  Gluck's  '  Iphigenia  in  Aulis.'     Had  he  done  none  other  but  this,  in 
many  respects,  beautiful  work,  he  would  yet  be  worthy  of  the  highest 
esteem.    To  learn  to  know  the  "  why  and  wherefore  "  of  this  arrangement 
by  a  detailed  insight  into  the  score  is  a  very  great  enjoyment.     "Wagner 
has  left  the  work  so  uninjured,  owing  to  his  reverence  for  the  great 
master,  that  he  has,  on  the  contrary,  given  the  noblest  and  most  positive 
proof  of  this.     Truly  the  old  saying,  "  Quod  licet  lovi  non  licet  bovi,"  is 
none  the  less  applicable  on  that  account.     I  think  that,  later  on,  in  some 
lustra,*  not  before,  I  shall  do  the  same  for  the  '  Orpheus,'  which  also 
needs  polishing  up,  if  one  would  not  have  it  become  unenjoyable  to  the 
masses,  and  of  only  an  occasional  historical  interest  to  the  privileged  few. 
My  pianoforte  arrangement  is  treated  in  a  good,  strong,  simple  style — 
perhaps  as  such   it  may  become  a  model  one.     Certainly  if  I  didn't 
succeed  in   such   an   easy  task   as   this   I   should  despair   of   myself. 
"Whether  I  shall  get  all  these  things  done  before  I  go  to  Vienna  I  really 
don't  know. 

Give  my  love  to  Louise  and  "Willi,  and  a  Vivat  to  the  new-comer ! 
Farewell,  best  father ;  I  must  be  otf  to  my  teaching,  and  therefore 
conclude. 

Hans  being  now  extremely  busy,  and  his  letters,  comparatively  speaking, 
few  and  far  between,  a  few  extracts  are  here  inserted  from  letters  from  his 
mother  to  his  sister,  written  from  Weimar  : — 

[?  November. "[ 
"  Hans  is  well,  but  is  looking  wretched ;  he  is  very  industrious,  but 

*  Periods  of  five  years,  in  the  old  Roman  days. 


WEIMAR.  123 

is  in  continual  agitation ;  he  would  be  able  to  do  such  great  things,  but 
unfortunately  lie  devotes  most  of  his  time  to  the  glorification  of  Wagner. 
He  is  perfectly  fanatical  about  it,  and  sacrifices  himself  entirely,  placing 
himself  and  all  his  own  aims  in  the  background." 

25th  November. 

"  Hans  was  in  a  pretty  state  for  the  week,  or  rather,  ten  days  of 
Berlioz'  stay  here :  rehearsals,  management  of  all  sorts,  doing  the 
honours  to  strangers  with  and  for  Liszt,  and  on  the  top  of  all  that  the 
article  on  Berlioz ;  never  in  bed  before  three  o'clock  !  Yesterday  he  was 
feeling  rather  out  of  spirits." 

18^^  December. 
•  •••••••• 

"I  have  indeed  seen  Hans,  but  have  hardly  spoken  to  him;  he  is 
very  busy  giving  Spanish  lessons  to  the  little,  or  rather,  the  big  Princess 
Marie,  besides  his  music  lessons,  and  a  great  deal  of  work  with  Liszt, 
and  so  on.  .  .  .  To-day  1  paid  a  visit  with  Hans  to  old  Schwendler, 
who  has  known  all  possible  people  of  interest,  and  remains  perfectly 
fresh  in  spite  of  his  eighty  years.  It  amused  me  to  see  how  Hans 
carried  on  an  interesting  conversation  with  as  much  ease  as  subtlety ;  he 
is  altogether  very  remarkable ;  he  has  on  the  one  side  an  incredible 
self-command,  certainty,  and  aplomb,  and  then  again  a  boundless  impru- 
dence, which  may  drag  him  into  the  worst  quarrels,  and  there  are  more 
of  such  contrasts  in  his  character." 

2^th  December. 

"  On  the  last  day  we  were  all  with  Liszt,  who  played  marvellously 
with  Joachim  (Kreutzer  Sonata) ;  at  midnight  they  brought  me  home ; 
at  half-past  three  in  the  morning  I  was  again  at  the  Arnims,  and 
accompanied  them  to  the  station,  where  Liszt  joined  us  with  Joachim 
and  Hans,  and  we  all  six  started  off  in  one  coupe.  .  .  . 

New  Year's  Day  to  church  early;  a  letter  from  you.  I  dressed 
and  went  to  the  Princess's,  where  we  dined  with  Talleyrand  enfamille 
but  magnificently.  After  dinner  Liszt  sat  with  me  alone  for  a  couple  of 
hours  m  an  ante-room,  and  talked  with  me  most  afi'ectionately  about 
Hans ;  he  was  very  earnest,  and  reiterated  many  times,  *  Je  I'aime 
comme  mon  fils,  je  me  regarde  comme  son  pere,  et  comme  aujpurd'hui  ce 
sera  en  dix  ans.' " 


124  HANS   VON   BiJLOW, 


TO  PETER  CORNELIUS. 

Wbimar,  20th  December  1852. 

Dear  Brother  among  Elephants, 

The  elephant  is  now  opposite  the  other  elephant  at  "Werner's 
wine  store,  first  floor,  and  we  shall  have  a  right  jolly,  elephantine  sort 
of  Christmas.  The  Arnims  remain  here  till  the  New  Year,  and  Joachim 
also,  who  is  then  going  to  be  Concertmeister  at  Hanover — with  advance- 
ment. 

You  are  the  only  one  wanting  to  our  circle ;  there  is  a  gap  which 
you  alone  can  and  must  fill ;  it  is  for  you  to  complete  the  incomplete 
whole.  So,  without  wasting  words,  make  yourself  ready,  and  come 
and  be  a  light  to  us  in  Weimar,  and  that  quickly,  without  delay. 

You  know  you  intended  in  any  case  to  come  back  to  us,  and,  even 
if  it  is  only  a  flying  visit,  you  will  never  again  find  Weimar  just  as  it 
is  now ;  therefore  tear  yourself  away  from  the  Westphalian  hams  and 
come  here. 

We  are  expecting  you  most  positively  and  as  quickly  as  possible, 
and  will  take  no  denial.  Pack  up  your  bundle  and  come ;  bring  my 
shirt  with  you,  in  exchange  for  which  you  shall  have  your  shawl,  which 
I  am  meanwhile  using. 

You  belong  to  a  society,  a  league,  to  which  you  have  sworn  no 
obedience,  wherefore  you  owe  it  all  the  more.  It  is  commanded  you  to 
start  off  at  once,  and  to  come  and  thaw  with  us  as  soon  as  possible,  for 
you  must  be  half  frozen. 

You  are  such  an  unceremonious  sort  of  fellow  that  I  need  not  add 
another  word  to  this  letter  and  the  order  it  contains.  All  the  more,  it  is 
enough  that  I  am  in  a  hurry  to  send  oS'  this  letter ;  for  four  other  people 
besides  myself  are  dying  of  impatience  to  see  you. 

The  knight  Franz  will  also  rejoice  to  see  you  again;  it  is,  it  must 
be,  of  consequence  to  you  also  to  meet  him  again  at  a  time  when  things 
are  quieter  than  formerly. 

Let  us  have  a  line  to  say  when  we  may  expect  you  at  the 
station.  My  address  is  "  Carlsplatz  :i8,  c/o  Professor  Schwerdtgeburth" 
(opposite  Joachim).  I  have  been  settled  there  a  fortnight  as  a  self- 
govern*  man. 

It  goes  without  saying  that  you  will  stay  either  with  one  of  us  or 

*  These  two  words  are  put  in  English  by  Biilow. 


WEIMAR.  125 

with  the  Arnims,  who  have  plenty  of  spare  room.     You  should  just  see 
the  rows  and  disputes  there  will  be  amongst  us  about  this. 
Adieu,  and  to  our  very  speedy  meeting. 


TO  HIS  SISTER. 

Weimar,  2Sfh  December  1852. 


Dearkst  Sister, 


I  have  thought  very  often  of  you  during  the  Christmas 
days,  and  I  have  been  really  verj'  sorry  that  our  mutual  correspondence 
has  had  such  a  long  rest.  I  have  reproached  mj'self  very  much  about 
this,  but  I  really  could  not  help  it.  I  have  been  so  very  much  engrossed 
lately,  mentally,  and  stand  so  alone  in  this ;  and  it  would  be  quite  a 
Herculean  and  Danaid  work  to  write  full  particulars  to  anyone  of  things 
wliich  I  can't  always  make  clear  to  myself,  and  which  someone  else 
would  understand  still  less,  and  would  misunderstand  still  more. 

Mamma  will  have  written  you  word  how  we  spent  our  Christmas 
evening  here  at  the  Arnims'.  She  herself  had  one  of  her  unfortunate 
sick  headaches,  and  was  very  uneasy  at  the  non-arrival  of  news  from 
you.  She  has  got  so  accustomed  to  hearing  from  you  often,  and 
rejoices  a  whole  week  over  your  letters  in  prospective,  by  which  you 
have  much  increased  her  great  tenderness  for  you.  So  go  on  writing  to 
her  often,  especially  as  it  is  a  satisfaction  to  you  to  be  able  to  express 
yourself  freely  from  your  heart. 

Bettina  has  given  Joachim  and  me  each  a  glass  on  which  the 
names  of  the  three  fairies  are  engraved.  That  was  the  nicest  possible 
Christmas  present  to  us. 

Joachim  goes  at  New  Year  to  Hanover,  where  he  is  taking  a  very 
brilliant  and  important  position.  His  departure  would  be  a  great  trouble 
to  me — and  it  also  comes  at  the  same  time  as  that  of  the  Arnim  family, 
who  have  really  grown  into  my  very  heart — were  it  not  that  the  time  I 
still  have  in  Weimar  myself  may  also  be  counted  by  days.  For  Liszt 
lias  fixed  the  beginning  of  February  for  my  going  to  Vienna  ;  I  am  not 
anxious,  but  only  curious  to  see  how  it  will  fare  with  me  there. 

No  doubt  you  already  know  that  mamma  made  me  come  down  from 
the  Altenburg,  and  has  got  me  lodgings  in  the  town.  I  should  have  been 
perfectly  frozen  up  there  during  the  winter,  and  should  have  been  without 
any  attendance  and  every  sort  of  care  ;  and  so,  for  a  thousand  other 
weighty  reasons,  I'^am  uncommonly  glad  to  live  in  town,  about  fifty 
steps  from  where  mamma  is  living. 


126  HANS  VON   B0LOW. 

In  Jena  I  played  lately  twice  within  a  fortnight  at  the  academical 
concerts,  and  pleased  much.  I  tell  you  this  because  it  is  perhaps  not  a 
matter  of  indifference  to  you. 

Do  write  soon  and  tell  me  what  you  are  thinking  of  doing  or  of 
leaving  undone  for  the  future — how  long  you  are  going  to  stay  at 
Otlishausen,  etc.  I  heard  through  mamma  with  great  sympathy  of  your 
feelings  about  your  stay  there.  Work  and  enjoy  yourself  in  the  solitude, 
which  can  also  be  a  real  happiness — a  happiness  for  which  I  have  long 
wished  enormously. 

Anyone  else  in  my  place  might  perhaps  be  quite  contented 
with  some  good-will ;  .  .  .  that  I  can't  be  so,  with  that  everything  is 
said.  Things  have  no  value  in  themselves^  and  they  only  attain  it  by 
their  relation  to  that /or  which  they  exist. 

May  the  New  Year  be  a  right  happy  one  for  you !  Look  to  one 
thing  alone  before  all  else — your  health — and  take  as  much  care  of  it  as 
though  it  were  the  property  of  someone  else.  Then  freshness  and  courage 
will  return  again  to  you,  and  you  will  be  able  to  become  something  for 
yourself ;  and  that  is  the  chief  thing.  Outside  ourselves  we  find  nothing, 
absolutely  and  entirely  nothing,  confoundedly  nothing. 

Give  my  love  to  Louise  and  the  two  little  ones ;  and  let  me  soon 
hear  from  you,  as  I  also  regard  this  letter  only  as  a  conire-marque. 


TO   HIS   MOTHER. 

Leipzig,  last  of  December  1852. 

Dearest  Mother, 

Heartiest  love  and  good  wishes  for  the  New  Year.  That 
you  are  perhaps  beginning  it,  alas  !  sadly  and  alone  this  time,  is  the  only 
thing  that  troubles  the  happy  days  here,  in  which  I  am  gliding  from  '52 
into  '53.  Our  journey  was  an  uncommonly  pleasant  one ;  we  were  all  in 
the  highest  good-humour.  And  then  we  still  had  to  consider  two  pro- 
posals which  I  laid  before  them  ;  the  first  on  our  early  journey,  the 
second  with  somewhat  desperate  efforts.  The  results  are,  first,  that  we 
all  six  yesterday,  all  five  to-day — for  Liszt  started  off  at  seven  o'clock — 
are  living  together  in  the  '  Hotel  de  Bavi^re '  and  the  adjoining  house, 
without  any  hotel  scandal,  and  on  the  first  floor ;  secondly,  that 
the  Amims,  as  well  as  Joachim,  will  not  leave  here  till  early  on 
Sunday  morning.  It  has  cost  me  rewarded  trouble,  yet  trouble,  to 
bring  them  round  to  this,  and  to  frighten  them  into  writing  to  their 
family  to  put  off  their  journey. 

I  ordered   the  two  bouquets,  at  one  reichsthaler,  quite  early  this 


WEIMAR.  127 

morning,  at  the  florist  Rohland's,  in  Auerbach's  Hof,  and  you  may  count 
on  them  for  certain. 

In  the  morning  I  went  about  with  Liszt  and  Joachim,  to  SenfF,  and  to 
Hartel,  where  I  had  to  play  a  piece  from  the  '  Midsummer  Night's 
Dream  ; '  also  to  David  and  Gade,  whom  we  did  not  find  at  home.  At 
two  o'clock  we  dined  together,  entre  nous,  and  soon  after  that  Liszt 
received  visits  from  David,  Radecke,*  and  Brendel.  Then  I  went  with 
the  Arnims,  who  had  a  heap  of  commissions  to  do,  for  the  Princess 
amongst  others,  whereby  I  have  made  fresh  progress  in  my  Sardanapalisa- 
tion.  In  the  evening  we  went  to  see  Kistner,  then  went  to  a  party  at 
Brendel's ;  but  our  visit  only  lasted  for  half  an  hour,  for  by  nine  o'clock 
we  were  with  the  Arnims  at  a  party  at  David's,  where  a  gorgeous  supper 
was  arranged,  and  where  I  distinguished  myself  still  more  gorgeously  on 
a  wretched  grand  piano.  Liszt  was  really  excessively  pleased  with  me. 
I  played  with  great  certainty  and  freedom,  and  even  astonished  him,  as 
well  as  everybody  else.  He  will  tell  you  about  it  himself  when  you  see 
him  tomorrow.  "We  were,  in  case  I  was  back  in  time,  to  dine  with  the 
Princess  on  New  Year's  Day.  I  am  writing  very  hurriedly,  but  it  is 
impossible  to  give  you  any  news  except  in  this  broken  fashion.  You 
will  rather  have  it  than  none.  Yesterday  evening  was  really  an 
important  one  for  me.  Liszt  expressed  to  me  several  times  his  extreme 
pleasure  at  my  "  confirmation  "  of  his  hopes,  and  was  altogether  unspeak- 
ably good  to  me. 

Senff,  Gade,  Radecke,  even  David,  etc.,  have  given  me  high  praise. 
Tomorrow  will  be  an  interesting  concert.  I  shall  go  to  the  rehearsal  for 
an  hour  today,  because  they  have  all  invited  me  to  it.  Joachim  is  get- 
ting impatient,  but  gives  you  a  hand-kiss  herewith. 

I  am  feeling  fabulously  well  in  every  respect,  and  should  like  to 
extend  my  stay  a  few  days  longer,  as  I  have  made  my  debut  here  so 
successfully  and  well.  People  come  forward  to  me  in  a  very  kind 
manner. 

If  the  Arnims  were  not  asleep  they  would  send  you  a  thousand 
warm  greetings. 

The  town  has  really  become  very  handsome  since  I  was  last  here. 
No  doubt  at  the  moment  I  am  seeing  everything  through  rose-coloured 
spectacles.  Once  more  let  me  assure  you  that,  from  the  point  of  utility, 
a  few  days  more  here  would  be  very  advantageous  to  me,  and  so  do  let 
me  have  them. 

I  will  write  and  let  you  know  when  I  am   coming.      Liszt   will 

*  Robert  Radecke  (born  1830),  conductor,  composer  ;  from  1871-87  conductor  in 
Berlin  ;  at  present  Director  of  the  Royal  Institute  for  Church  Music  in  Berlin. 


12S  HANS   VON   BiJLOW. 

probably  call  on  you,  so  don't  be  out  too  much.  At  Liszt's  most  stringent 
command,  I  had  to  get  yesterday  a  new  and  very  elegant  hat ;  the  old 
one  was  too  good-for-nothing,  and  I  could  not  go  out  either  with  Liszt 
or  the  Arnims  in  it.  For  this  expenditure  of  3|  reichsthaler  for  a 
birthday  present  tie  fait  I  am  therefore  not  answerable. 


TO   HIS   MOTHER. 

Leipzig,  3rd  January  1853, 
Hotel  de  Bavikke  40. 

Dearest  Mother, 

Warmest  greetings  from  the  Arnims  and  Joachiiii,  whom 
I  left  at  six  o'clock  yesterday  at  Kbthen.  If  the  former  had  not  spent 
all  their  money — and  we  tried  very  hard  to  get  them  to  stay  a  few 
days  longer — I  believe  they  would  have  done  so.  I  was  going  to  say 
goodbye  to  them  at  the  Leipzig  station  at  half-past  three,  when  Fraulein 
Armgart  said  it  was  so  obviously  impossible  that  I  should  not  accompany 
them  as  far  as  Kbthen,  that  I  could  not  do  otherwise.  There  were  now 
two  projects  mooted :  first,  to  stay  the  night  at  Kbthen ;  and,  finally, 
the  more  bold  stroke  that  Joachim  and  I  should  both  go  with  the 
Arnims  as  far  as  Jiiterbog,  and  then  return  by  the  night  train ;  but  both 
these  plans  were  given  up  when  we  found  at  Kbthen  that  the  trains  fitted 
in  so  well  for  us  all  that  Joachim  could  start  for  Magdeburg  at  half-past 
seven,  and  that  I  could  return  to  Leipzig  at  the  same  moment.  So 
Joachim  and  I  had  an  hour  and  a  half  together,  and  could  lament  in 
common,  and  talk  of  many  things  in  which  we  had  a  common  interest. 
I  must  confess  to  you  that  I  felt  the  parting  very  keenly,  and  today  I 
feel  rather  out  of  my  mind.  I  cannot  come  to  Weimar,  and  also  I  have 
not  yet  been  able  to  do  varioUs  commissions,  nor  to  begin  to  copy  and 
correct  my  songs.  Today  I  shall  most  likely  spend  the  whole  day  shut 
up  in  my  room,  and  tomorrow  evening,  or  early  the  next  morning,  I 
will  return  to  Weimar. 

We  spent  New  Year's  Eve  at  Prof.  Fechner's — pleasant  people — 
whose  famulus,  with  whom  I  was  once  slightly  acquainted,  and  Prof. 
Weisse  were  the  only  other  people  there.  The  Schletter  picture-galler}', 
which  contains  some  capital  works  of  art,  the  New  Year  concert,  a  kind 
of  musical  afternoon-matinee  at  Joachim's  former  teacher,  Dr  Klengel'p, 
filled  up  our  New  Year's  Day. 

If  you  are  ever  able  to  think  yourself  into  my  frame  of  mind  you 
will  understand  that  I  cannot  venture  at  this  moment  to  come  back.  I 
am  feeling  too  unhappy  to  do  so.     Today  I  shall,  in  perfect  quiet,  pre- 


WEIMAR.  129 

pare  my  songs  for  the  press — I  shall  hardly  get  them  done — since  I  can- 
not accomplish  this  quickly  in  "Weimar,  as  is  necessary. 

I  hope  you  have  begun  the  New  Year  happily,  and  without  head- 
ache, and  that  you  have  received  the  bouquets  and  seen  Liszt.  Before 
my  departure  I  have  still  to  see  David,  Radecke,  Kistner,  and  others,  so 
that  the  time  still  remaining  to  me  here  is  quite  filled  up.    .    .   . 

TO  HIS  FATHER. 

Weimar,  %th  January  1853. 

Dearest  Father, 

Today,  the  8th  January,  I  have  spent  my  birthday  until 
five  o'clock  this  afternoon  in  bed,  very  unwell,  full  of  sad  and  gloomy 
thoughts  on  the  one  side,  and  on  the  other  with  the  fatalist's  resolution 
of  resignation  to  the  inevitable,  and  to  the  lot  assigned  to  me.  The  New 
Year  has  begun  very  sadly  for  me,  with  the  sudden  death,  a  few  days 
ago,  of  Theodor  Uhlig  in  Dresden,  an  old  friend  of  mine  whom  I  deeply 
loved  and  respected.  Nevertheless  today  I  have  finished  with  many  of 
the  old  things,  and  have  made  many  plans,  the  fulfilment  of  which  is  all 
the  more  sure  as  they  are  called  forth  by  my  own  free  will,  and  neither  by 
religious  nor  moral  introspection.  I  am  conscious  that  this  New  Year  just 
begun  is  the  Va  Banque  of  my  life,*  and  I  look  steadfastly,  though 
also  without  undue  exhilaration,  at  the  shaping  of  my  future. 

You  have  yourself  so  often  described  your  position  towards  me  as 
just  that  of  my  best  older  friend,  and  have  thereby  abdicated  the  throne 
of  traditional  parental  authority  in  favour  of  a  much  nobler  and  more 
beautiful  one. 

It  has  been  an  unspeakable  grief  to  me  to  get  an  answer  from  you 
to  my  letter  for  your  birthday — in  spite  of  my  earnest  request — an  answer 
which  was  more  miserable  than  I  could  have  foreseen  when  I  opened  the 
letter  in  fear  and  trembling.  If  you  had  not  written,  I  could  have 
accomplished,  in  a  succession  of  letters,  what  I  had  no  heart  for  after 
your  reply. 

And  whilst  I  should  have  endeavoured  in  this  manner  to  bring  my- 
self nearer  to  you  again,  I  should  have  followed  my  real  inner  need ;  it 
is  indeed  only  according  to  the  measure  of  your  love  for  me  that  you  can 
expect  to  enter  into  my  position  and  frame  of  mind,  which  are  of  such 
an  individual  and  special  nature  that  they  can  only  be  understood  by  one 
who  is  with  me,  and  cannot  be  judged  by  someone  hundreds  of  miles 
away.     I  am  sure  I  am  one  of  the  least  egotistic  men  that  can  be,  but 

*  Meaning  "  The  die  is  cast." 
I 


130  HANS  VON   Bt)LOW. 

it  is  only  natural  that  one  should  be  more  disposed  at  the  moment  to  rely 
on  those  who  are  near  at  hand,  to  give  support  to  a  man  in  process  of 
development,  who  does  not  yet  stand  on  his  own  feet,  who  is  not  yet 
independent,  such  as  myself.  I  break  off,  because  I  have  abjured  all 
bitterness  of  heart  with  the  coming  of  the  New  Year. 

One  thing  which  makes  it  ever  so  much  easier  for  me  to  lay  aside 
this  bitterness  of  heart,  as  well  as  many  other  inborn  self-tormentings,  is 
the  acquaintance  and  intimate  intercourse  I  have  had  through  Liszt  with 
Frau  von  Arnim  and  her  daughters.  I  have  so  very  much  to  thank  these 
delightful  people  for,  for  they  have  done  me  ever  so  much  good  in  all 
sorts  of  ways,  and  their  coming,  and  the  being  with  them  in  Weimar, 
forms  one  of  the  brightest  spots  in  my  existence.  Without  exercising 
any  injurious  influence  on  my  personal  liberty,  much  that  is  hard  and 
uncouth  in  my  outer  self  has  been  smoothed  and  softened  by  them,  for 
my  own  good  alone.  The  truly  rare  sympathy,  the  manner  in  which 
they  singled  me  out,  and  the  regard  they  showed  me,  have  increased  and 
strengthened  my  faith  in  myself — a  thing  so  absolutely  necessary  to  me 
in  the  time  when  I  must  come  out  into  publicity  and  into  life  with  my 
own  individuality — and  have  helped  me  indirectly  to  concentrate  more 
firmly  my  often  absent  mind,  and  have  certainly  also  kept  me  from  many 
a  stupidity  or  foolishness,  into  which  my  misanthropic  and  belligerent 
temperament  might  otherwise  have  led  me,  without  their  Deus-ex- 
Tnac^md-appearance.  With  Fraulein  Armgart — upon  whom  my  interest 
was  concentrated  from  the  very  beginning — especially,  I  have  struck  up 
a  friendship  which  stands  foremost  in  the  inventory  of  my  present  feelings. 
Unfortunately  my  antipathy  to  correspondence  will  not  allow  me  to  keep 
up  an  unbroken  intercourse  with  these  delightful  people.   .   .   . 

I  hope  by  the  end  of  this  year  to  be  able  to  congratulate  you  on  the 
year  and  on  myself  :  at  the  beginning  of  next  month,  somewhere  about 
the  8th  or  10th  February,  1  am  leaving  here  (at  Liszt's  desire)  to  give  at 
once  my  first  concert  in  Vienna,  which,  by  Liszt's  mediation,  will  be 
announced  and  arranged  for  me  before  my  arrival  by  the  music-publisher 
Haslinger,  whom  1  got  to  know  personally  last  year  in  Weimar. 

Liszt  prognosticates  a  great  success  for  me  He  will  write  to  you 
quite  fully  about  me  before  I  start.  He  has  really  not  had  time  as  yet, 
and  also  he  could  not  write  anything  so  definite  before,  as  he  now  can ; 
he  wanted  first  to  know  me  better,  and  to  be  able  definitely  to  gauge  the 
hopes  which  he  has  formed  of  me.  He  is  extremely  attached  to  me,  and 
assures  me  of  this  constantly ;  he  does  more,  he  proves  it  by  his  actions. 
What  has  made  me  the  more  dear  to  him  is  not  the  understanding  I 
have  for  him  and  for  Art  in  general — not  my  talent,  which  is  distantly 
related  to  his — but  my  heart,  and  unegotistic,  ready  perception,  which  I 


WEIMAK.  131 

showed,  for  instance,  on  the  occasion  of  Berlioz'  visit  to  Weimar,  when  I 
tried  in  every  possible  way  and  with  the  utmost  zeal  to  be  of  service  to 
him,  both  by  writing  and  by  action.  My  relations  to  Liszt  are  altogether 
different  from,  and  much  less  disturbed  and  much  clearer  than,  those  of 
any  other  pupil  or  of  any  young  artist  patronised  by  him. 

The  manner  in  which  I  went  through  the  rehearsals  for  public 
performances  (after  Ballenstedt)  this  summer  at  Erfurt  and  twice  at  Jena, 
where  I  made  my  debut,  but  always  without  payment ;  the  certainty  with 
which  I  also  recently  made  my  appearence  as  his  pupil  at  an  evening  party 
at  Concertmeister  David's  in  Leipzig,  and  on  a  rather  poor  instrument — 
all  this  confirms  him  in  his  hopes  for  me.  My  first  tour  will  conclude  at 
latest  by  the  middle  of  July.  I  shall  only  give  concerts  in  the  Austrian 
Monarchy  —  principal  points,  Vienna  and  Pest, — and  then  I  shall 
return  to  Weimar  until  something  fresh  is  settled.  Liszt  thinks  I  shall 
"  earn  "  a  clear  profit  of  2000  gulden,  or  even  more. 

But  in  order  that  I  may  start  on  my  career  comforted  and  happy,  I 
must  be  at  peace  with  all  those  nearest  to  me,  with  whom  any  misunder- 
standing makes  me  wretched.  My  mother,  on  whose  frame  of  mind  in 
general,  as  well  as  on  whose  attitude  towards  me,  the  Amims  have  had 
the  happiest  influence,  appears  quite  reconciled  to  me,  without  any 
looking  back  or  any  remains  of  old  antipathies.  Will  you  not  be  the 
same,  and  believe  in  my  devotion  and  love  ? 

In  my  next  letter  I  hope  to  be  able  to  send  you  a  printed  copy  of 
my  songs  published  in  Leipzig  as  Op.  1. 


TO  HIS  FATHER. 

Wbimab,  27th  January  1853. 

Dearest  Father, 

My  warmest  thanks  for  your  kind  letter,  which  has 
lightened  my  heart  of  a  heavy  burden.  Also  for  the  enclosed  assistance 
for  my  journey,  which  I  have  likewise  thankfully  received,  and  mainly 
used  in  paying  a  few  remaining  debts.  It  pleases  me  immensely  to 
have  you  again — even  if  bodily  absent — present  as  a  spectator  of  my 
future  successes  and  failures,  and  to  reckon  you  among  those  interested 
in  the  racing  of  my  fingers.  I  hope  often  to  be  able  to  send  you  reports 
— and  good  ones — from  Vienna.  Happiness  makes  me  as  happy  to  write 
as  it  makes  me  talkative,  and  only  when  in  a  bad  humour  and  despond- 
ent do  I  forcibly  give  myself  up  to  isolation  and  retirement,  because 
when  the  we  •plus  ultra  of  loneliness  and  wretchedness  is  reached,  there 
must  be  a  change  for  the  better. 


132  HANS  VON   BOLOW. 

You  will  get  a  very  discontented  note  from  me  today ;  but  for  some 
weeks  past  I  have  felt  my  brain  in  such  a  state  of  tumult  that  I  have  had 
to  give  up  thinking.  My  piano  and  my  landlord  can  both  testify  to  this ; 
they  have  both  suffered  during  this  interregnum  of  my  piano-hammering 
hands.  I  practise  about  eight  hours  daily,  and  in  the  way  in  which  I 
do  it — the  only  one  by  which  I  can  get  any  results — it  is  pretty  irritat- 
ing, so  that  I  dare  attempt  nothing  further  except  the  care  of  my  bodily 
health.  In  about  ten  days  I  shall  be  ready  for  ray  journey.  I  must 
first  get  several  manuscripts  of  Liszt's  copied  which  he  has  lent  me  to 
take  with  me,  which  will  be  a  most  interesting  addition  to  my  repertoire, 
and  of  great  value  to  me,  and  I  must  then  study  them  as  quickly  as 
possible.  Among  them  is,  for  instance,  one  of  Weber's  Polonaises, 
instrumented  and  arranged  for  orchestra ;  a  Fantasia  on  Beethoven's 
'  Ruins  of  Athens,'  for  piano  and  orchestra,  and  another  on  Hungarian 
themes;  all  these  are  by  Liszt,  and  perfectly  new,  not  even  known  by 
name.  Then,  indeed,  before  I  am  really  absolutely  ready  to  start, 
there  is  only  the  unavoidable  necessity  of  having  my  passport  made 
ready.  May  I  ask  your  help  in  this  matter  ?  To  enable  me  to  get  to 
Vienna  without  hindrance,  my  passport  must  at  any  rate  have  the  vise 
of  the  Austrian  ambassador  in  Berne.  I  should  think  there  will  be  as 
little  diflficulty  in  getting  this  in  Berne  as  Berlancourt  has  made  in  giving 
me  a  vise  for  the  Prussian  States  and  the  Grand  Dukedom  of  Baden — 
the  latter  without  my  even  asking  for  it,  out  of  extreme  Christian  human 
kindness.  Will  you  then  be  so  very  good  as  to  relieve  me  of  this  burden 
of  citizenship,  and  to  get  the  official  to  be  quick.  Be  assured  of  my  thanks 
beforehand.  I  wait  here,  of  course,  till  I  get  the  passport  back,  vised  or 
not,  and  will  at  once  let  you  know  of  its  arrival  and  of  the  date  of  my 
departure. 

I  have  long  since  determined  and  prepared  strictly  to  follow  your 
advice,  to  keep  a  sevenfold  seal  upon  my  lips  and  their  guardian,  my 
heart,  not  only  as  regards  politics,  but  in  other  matters  also.  Just  as  I 
would  not  think  of  packing  in  my  luggage  one  of  Proudhon's  pamphlets 
concerning  1848,  so  I  do  not  scruple  to  leave  many  of  my  opinions, 
wishes,  plans,  sympathies,  and  antipathies  behind  me.  As  regards  politics 
especially,  1  have  for  a  considerable  time  belonged  to  those  people  who 
are  indifferent  from  a  feeling  of  disgust ;  and  little  by  little  a  number 
of  protecting  membranes  have  formed  round  the  still  dark-red  heart  of 
my  political  and  socialistic  bulb  of  opinion.  I  have  for  a  long  time  resolved 
and  prepared  to  draw  a  curtain  over  my  most  secret  inner  being,  aspirations 
and  endeavours,  which,  should  it  happen  to  be  open  for  ventilation, 
would  close  automatically  at  the  sight  of  black  and  yellow  barriers.  My 
exact  intention  in  going  to  Vienna  consists  in  this,  to  make  as  much 


WEIMAR.  133 

money  as  possible;  for  a  peaceful  independence  is  absolutely  essential  to 
me  for  the  life  and  activity  of  an  artist,  such  as  I  wish  and  hope  to 
become.  Of  course  (and  in  this  you  will  certainly  trust  me)  I  can 
never  be  tempted  to  become  a  traitor  to  my  artistic  Confession  of  Faith, 
or  to  renounce  the  unalterable  and  plain  principles  which  I  hold  here. 
Liszt  will  pretty  nearly  arrange  beforehand  the  programme  for  the  four 
concerts  which  I  am  to  give  in  Vienna,  and  will  also  specify  in  what 
private  circles  or  salons  I  should  or  should  not  play,  etc.  In  addition  to 
his  own  letters  of  introduction  I  shall  also  have  some  of  a  very  different 
kind  from  Frau  v.  Liittichau,  from  Noels  (at  Thun),  from  the  von 
Arnims,  Fanny  Lewald  and  others,  so  that  I  shall  have  opportunity  of 
making  myself  sufficiently  known. 

Your  letter  was,  alas,  somewhat  laconic ;  about  yourself,  Louise, 
and  Isidore,  of  whom  I  should  so  gladly  have  heard  something  more 
through  you,  there  was  not  a  single  word,  nor  about  Willi  and  Heinz. 
I  hope  and  beg  much  that  you  will  make  up  for  this  next  time,  so  that 
I  may  not  feel  myself  so  much  of  a  stranger  in  the  family  circle  at 
Otlishausen. 

It  will,  besides,  not  do  for  you  to  write  to  me  in  Vienna  about 
your  literary  and  poetical  work,  in  so  far  as  this  is  connected  with  the 
present  time  and  its  occurrences — this  one  remark  will  show  you  that  I 
am  on  my  guard;  and  I  have  not  only  forbidden  any  suspicious  subjects 
to  be  mentioned  in  letters  to  me  there,  but  have  especially  declined  to 
receive  letters  from  friends  who  are  at  all  notorious.  Liszt  wished  you 
would  sometime  make  him  a  present  of  your  works,  at  any  rate  of  your 
original  work,  your  novels,  etc.  Please  do  so  when  you  have  a  suitable 
opportunity.  My  Spanish  pupil — the  young  Princess  Wittgenstein — 
reads  Manzoni's  '  I  Promessi  Sposi '  with  the  assistance  of  your  trans- 
lation. I  had  got  on  so  well  in  Spanish  that  the  Princess  did  me  the 
honour  to  make  use  of  my  knowledge  of  it  for  the  benefit  of  her 
daughter,  who,  not  possessing  any  particular  social  talents  (such  as  music 
or  drawing),  was  to  be  made  a  linguist.  This  has  taken  up  a  good  deal 
of  my  time,  but  its  loss  was  made  up  for  by  an  equivalent  which  enabled 
me  to  repay  part  of  my  debt  to  the  Altenburg,  to  improve  myself  in 
knowledge  of  the  language,  and  to  make  the  better  acquaintance  of  the 
amiable  and  clever  young  lady.  We  have  read  together  '  The  Faithful 
Prince,'  '  Zenobia,'  '  The  Physician  of  His  Honour,'  and  the  *  Devotion 
to  the  Cross,'  pretty  quickly  and  without  any  assistance  in  the  trans- 
lation. 

Frau  von  Herder  and  her  son  Alexander  have  been  here  several 
weeks,  and  will  probably  remain  here  for  some  time.  We  see  her  occa- 
sionally, though  not  often.     I  have,  alas,  not  time  enough  to  form  a 


134  HANS  VON   EiJLOW, 

nearer  acquaintance  with  Herr  von  Herder,  which  I  should  much  like  to 
do.  They  send  their  best  remembrances  to  you.  I  shall  write  a  few 
lines  to  Isidore,  if  possible,  when  I  come  back  from  Liszt,  who  will  give 
us,  his  pupils,  a  lesson  again  today  for  an  hour  or  so. 

It  would  be  a  great  pleasure  to  me  if,  after  a  successful  result  of 
my  journey  to  Vienna  and  Pest,  which  will  end  just  in  the  best  travel- 
ling time  of  the  summer,  I  could  visit  you  in  Otlishausen,  where  I  should 
possibly  still  find  Isidore. 

My  mother  will  feel  rather  lonely  after  parting  with  me.  She 
intends  to  spend  a  week  in  Jena,  and  then  to  go  to  Dresden,  which  is 
always  a  much  pleasanter  place  of  abode  for  her,  when  I  am  not  with  her, 
than  Weimar. 

It  must  have  been  shortly  after  receiving  the  above  letter  that  Eduard 
von  Biilow  wrote  one  to  his  cousin  Ernst,  from  which  an  extract  is  given 
below,  not  only  because  it  is  the  last  letter  of  his  extant,  but,  above  all, 
because  it  is  satisfactory  to  see  that,  so  short  a  time  before  his  own  death, 
he  was  entirely  at  one  with  his  son's  profession  and  development. 


EDUARD   TO   ERNST  VON  BULOW. 

[1853.] 

.  .  .  "Hans  has  completed  his  musical  education.  His  first  com- 
position is  just  coming  out  in  Leipzig,  and  he  is  now  going  off  on  his 
first  great  concert-tour  to  Vienna  and  Pest.  If  he  is  fortunate,  we  shall 
soon  hear  things  publicly  to  his  honour.  Liszt  has  the  highest  expecta- 
tions of  his  success,  and  has  earned  Hans'  deepest  gratitude  by  having 
entirely  reconciled  his  mother  to  himself  and  his  vocation.  I  am  thoroughly 
satisfied  with  him  in  every  respect,  both  as  regards  the  development  of 
his  character,  conduct,  learning  and  art.  He  is  happy  and  contented  in 
the  latter,  and  will,  as  I  confidently  hope,  do  us  honour. 

In  his  political  principles  he  remains  unchanged,  for  which  God  be 
praised ;  but  he  has  learnt  to  control  himself  and  to  be  silent — until 
better  times.  You  will  perhaps  smile  at  the  rosy  colour  of  this  letter, 
but  I  assure  you  it  is  real ;  and,  should  Heaven  sooner  or  later  afflict  me 
with  the  reverse  of  the  medal,  well,  I  must  bear  it  too."  .  .  . 

Franziska,  writing  from  Dresden  to  her  daughter  at  Otlishausen,  on  the 
4th  March  1853,  says  : — 

"  At  a  quarter  to  ten  on  Wednesday  night  Hans  started  for  Vienna, 
where  I  earnestly  hope  he  has  safely  arrived.     He  has  six  letters  from 


WEIMAR.  135 

Liszt — letters  such  as  he  rarely  gives.      Amongst   other  things  Liszt 
writes : — 

'  Je  reclame  tous  les  services  de  mes  amis  pour  lui  comme  pour  moi 
meme,  et  les  consid^rerais  comme  rendus  k  ma  personne,  car  je  le  recon* 
nais  comme  mon  successeur  legitime,  comme  mon  heritier  de  par  la  grace 
de  Dieu  et  de  son  talent.' " 


AUSTRIA 


CHAPTER  VII. 
AUSTRIA. 

SPRING SUMMER,    1853. 

TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Vienna,  Palm  Sunday,  1853,  12th  March. 

Dearest  Mother, 

You  will  have  been  anxious  at  hearing  nothing  from  me  for 
so  long.  I  am  extremely  sorry  about  it,  but  I  did  not  want  to  make  you 
positively  unhappy  for  no  good,  and  that  is  the  reason  I  did  not  write. 
I  wanted  to  wait  till  I  had  given  my  second  concert,  at  which  a  change 
for  the  better  in  my  fate  was  possible — this  second  concert  took  place 
yesterday  (Saturday)  evening  at  half-past  9  o'clock.  'Now  my  patience 
to  bear  my  unlucky  fate  is  quite  exhausted.  I  am  writing  this  to  you 
in  bed ;  I  have  no  strength  to  get  up,  and  I  only  wonder  that  my  dis- 
gust with  life  allows  me  to  write  at  all. 

My  first  concert,  apart  from  expenses,  which  amounted  to  133  florins 
16  kreutzer,  brought  me  in  28  florins — I  have  all  the  receipts,  so  that  I 
know  I  have  not  been  cheated.  So  that  I  had  105  florins  to  pay  !  With 
this  amount  to  the  bad,  I  had  bought  the  privilege  of  seeing  my  name 
cut  up  in  the  most  nonsensical  manner  in  more  than  a  dozen  papers. 
Ignominious  existence  !  I  have  fretted  about  this  comparatively  little, 
but  it  has  disheartened  me  nevertheless,  and  made  me  unhappy,  in  spite 
of  the  success  which  I  enjoyed  with  a  free-ticket  public.  None  of  my 
introductions  have  been  of  the  slightest  use.  Stockhausen,  Dietrichstein, 
Thun,  Kbnneritz, — not  a  man  amongst  them  came  to  either  of  my 
concerts.  Liszt's  letters  have  been  of  just  as  little  use  to  me,  No  one 
has  shown  the  slightest  interest  in  me,  except  Haslinger,  who  did  so 
"  ex  officio,"  looking  after  the  business  arrangements  for  me — if  I  had 


140  HANS    VON   BULOW. 

doae  it  alone  it  would  have  been  more  economical — and  Dr  Liszt*  and 
Lowy.f  You  have  no  idea  how  lonely  and  dreadfully  forsaken  I  feel  ! 
Living  here  is  immoderately  dear.  I  did  not  remain  48  hours  in  the 
hotel,  yet  they  reckoned  it  as  3  days  by  the  dates  ;  by  great  good  luck 
I  found  some  lodgings  in  the  inner  city,  on  the  second  floor,  for  15 
florins  a  month  without  attendance.  That  is  tremendously  cheap  for 
here.  My  address  for  the  present  is,  Spenglergasse,  '  Zum  Auge  Gottes,' 
c/o  Herr  Landrath  von  Bujan.  In  a  suburb  I  could  not  possibly  have 
lived ;  it  would  have  been  too  far  away,  and  the  mud  in  the  37  suburbs 
is  so  thick  that  one  might  spend  a  whole  day  in  getting  from  one  road 
to  another.  I  am  as  much  exhausted  as  my  purse  is  from  the  constant 
running  and  driving  about.  In  spite  of  the  utmost  economy,  one  spends 
more  here  in  a  single  week  than  in  three  weeks  anywhere  else.  If  Liszt 
had  not  lent  me  200  florins,  instead  of  100,  I  should  have  had  nothing 
to  live  on  after  I  had  paid  for  my  first  concert.  I  can  give  you  proofs  of 
my  carefulness  if  it  interests  you,  as  I  have  kept  an  exact  account  of  my 
expenditure  from  day  to  day. 

If  only  you  knew  how  hard  it  is  to  me  to  go  on  writing ;  how  diffi- 
cult it  is  to  me  to  conquer  the  deep  loathing  that  my  present  experiences 
in  Vienna  have  given  me,  in  order  to  tell  you  how  things  have  gone  with 
me,  and  what  a  pitiable  state  of  mind  and  life  mine  is  at  present !  As  if 
I  had  not  had  enough  unhappiness  up  to  now  !  What  will  happen  to  me 
next,  I  have  not  the  remotest  idea.  Thus  much  as  a  preliminary  :  the 
costs  of  my  second  concert,  which  will  run  up  to  about  the  same  sum  as 
the  first,  I  cannot  pay,  even  if  I  left  myself  without  a  farthing  in  my 
pocket.  Possibly  someone  will  lend  me  the  money ;  perhaps  Ldwy,  but 
perhaps  also  not.  Perhaps  His  Majesty  Chance  wUl  help  me,  if  misery 
gives  me  a  letter  of  recommendation  to  him.  I  am  on  the  right  road  to 
become  a  great  man,  according  to  Napoleon's  judgment.  Moreover  the 
inauguration  of  the  proletariat  is  not  enjoyable.  Today  my  strength 
feels  quite  shattered ;  perhaps  tomorrow  I  shall  recover  it.  For  once  I 
shall  experience  the  piquant  situation  of  living  not  merely  from  day  to 
day,  but  from  hour  to  hour.  Perhaps  tomorrow  I  shall  say  quite  truly 
"  I  have  rested  my  hopes  upon  nothing."  But,  alas,  that  is  impossible, 
as  my  hopes  are  already  resting  on  less  than  nothing.  But  I  have  not 
told  you  anything  about  yesterday.  I  practised  the  whole  day  like  a 
madman.  When,  late  in  the  afternoon,  I  learned  that  not  a  fifth  of  my 
expenses  would  be  covered,  when  I  saw  that  the  wretched  weather  would 


•  Dr  Eduard  Liszt  was  the  younger  step-brother  of  Franz  Liszt's  father  ;  Liszt 
was  accustomed  to  call  him  his  eousin. 
t  Lowy,  a  banker,  and  friend  of  Liszt. 


AUSTRIA.  141 

probably  keep  away  the  few  people  who  did  intend  to  be  present,  such  a 
state  of  stupidity  and  overpowering  despondency  took  possession  of  me 
that  I  became  quite  unsusceptible  to  any  applause,  and  played  the  last 
piece  (Midsummer  Night's  Dream)  almost  badly.  (Don't  imagine  that  the 
lateness  of  the  hour  was  a  stupidity  on  my  part — here  you  cannot  do 
otherwise — no  concert  takes  place  while  the  theatre  is  going  on,  and 
people  like  best  to  come  on  to  a  concert  from  the  Italian  Opera.)  There 
was  only  one  feeble  call  for  me  at  the  end,  which  is  here  equivalent  to  a 
fiasco.  You  have  no  idea  how  I  felt ;  I  should  just  have  liked  to  break 
off  in  the  middle  of  my  playing  and  hurl  a  few  chairs  at  the  public,  and 
improvise  the  most  utter  rubbish  on  the  piano — the  critic  will  inveigh 
against  me  in  any  case,  I  thought  to  myself  ;  in  any  case  I  have  not  the 
wherewith  to  pay  the  expenses  !  Last  night  I  was  in  a  perfect  fever,  and 
could  not  sleep  ;  perhaps  I  shall  have  a  downright  illness. 

Of  Vienna  itself  I  have  seen  very  little.  Before  the  result  of  my 
concerts  I  have  been  to  no  theatre,  and  would  not  go  in  for  any  pleasure 
of  any  kind.  If  only  I  knew  what  vnll  become  of  me  now,  and  what  I 
must,  or  rather  can,  attempt.  For  today  I  can  stop  in  bed  and  not 
trouble  myself  about  anything; — but  tomorrow  ?  Curses  on  my  coming 
to  Vienna !  I  should  have  done  better  to  accept  the  post  Frau  v.  Liittichau 
offered  me,  through  you,  of  accompanist  or  chorus-director  in  Dresden, 
than  to  pay  for  the  chase  after  a  shadow  by  the  loss  of  all  happiness 
in  life. 

On  the  3rd  April  I  am  to  play  Bach's  Triple  Concerto  at  a  concert 
spirituel  with  the  pianist  Dachs  and  Professor  Fischhoff,  who,  although 
I  had  no  introduction  to  him,  has  received  me  in  the  most  friendly 
manner.  The  invitation  is  an  honourable  one,  but  of  course  I  don't 
know  how  much  longer  I  shall  stay  here.  Probably  nothing  will  come 
of  it.  I  understand  now  the  expression,  "forsaken  by  God  and  all  the 
world." 

On  you,  dear  mother,  I  would  on  no  account — do  you  hear,  on  no 
account — be  a  burden  any  longer.  If  however  there  could  be  anything 
done  with  regard  to  the  accompanist  post  in  Dresden — I  should  not  like 
to  come  to  grief  here  ignominiously.  Nowhere  do  I  see  a  way  out, 
nowhere  does  a  rescuing  hand  show  me  such  a  thing.  And  my 
superstition  that  I  shall  not  die  before  September  1855  forsakes  me, 
as  that  in  Liszt's  ring*  and  some  other  superstitions  have  already 
forsaken  me. 

I,  fool  that  I  was,  thought  that  I  should  find  roses  in  Vienna,  my 
hands  still  bleeding  from  the  thorns  of  earlier  days  !     Spine  senza  rose  ! 

*  Liszt  lent  Biilow  a  ring  as  a  talisman. 


142  HANS  VON   BiJLOW. 

That  also  applies,  because  the  two  Spinas,*  to  whom  Liszt  introduced 
me,  have  done  nothing  whatever  for  me. 

If  I  see  any  prospect  of  the  slightest  improvement  in  my  position, 
I  will  write  to  you  at  once,  so  as  not  to  keep  you  longer  in  suspense. 
I   promise   you   this   by   all   the   love   and    gratitude   I   feel   towards 

you. 


The  poor  mother,  at  home  in  Dresden,  passed  through  a  long  and  weary 
time  of  waiting,  till  at  last,  after  receiving  the  first  letter  from  Vienna  (the 
above),  she  wrote  to  her  daughter  : 

"  From  Hans  I  have  only  heard  once,  and  tliat  was  bad  news  ;  I  am  hourly 
hoping  for  better  tidings.  Liszt,  with  whom  I  am  in  correspondence,  does 
certainly  not  lose  hope,  but,  much  as  I  love  him,  that  does  not  comfort  me. 
Everything  that  I  foresaw,  when  he  took  that  unlucky  step  in  the  autumn  of 
1850,  has  come  to  pass  literally.     God  forgive  those  who  led  him  to  it." 


LISZT  TO  FKANZISKA  V.  BULOW. 

Weymar,  26th  March  [1853]. 
Madame, 

Before  receiving  your  letter,  for  which  I  beg  you  to  accept 
my  best  thanks,  I  had  received  from  various  quarters  news  of  your  son, 
who,  up  to  the  present  time,  has  not  written  to  me.  Upon  the  whole,  I 
am  far  from  judging  his  actual  position  at  Vienna  to  be  as  bad  as  he 
seems  to  have  described  it  to  you.  The  losses  which  his  two  first 
concerts  have  occasioned  him  can  easily  be  made  up,  and  I  am  going  to 
write  to  him  directly,  to  recommend  him  in  a  friendly  spirit  not  to  give 
way  to  a  despondency  or  ill-humour  which  would  not  be  at  all  in  season. 
The  experience  I  have  gained  in  these  matters  allows  me  to  tranquillize 
you  as  to  the  final  result  of  his  journey  to  Vienna,  which,  I  am  persuaded, 
will  appear  more  favourable  to  the  interests  of  his  talent,  his  career,  and 
even  his  purse,  than  you  imagine  possible  at  tin's  moment.  The  only 
thing  necessary  is  that  he  must  not  let  himself  be  discouraged,  and  that 
he  must  preserve  a  little  sangfroid,  in  order  to  profit  by  the  means  which 
will  continue  to  offer,  of  conquering  step  by  step  the  ground  to  which  he 
has  a  right.  The  bitter  and  onesided  tone  of  the  newspaper  critic  ought 
not  to  make  him  in  the  least  uneasy  ;  he  must  learn  to  bear  his  part  in 
these  things  quietly,  like  a  man  of  sense  and  talent :  chances  of  this  sort 
must  not  be  considered  as  sinister,  and  have  never  prevented  anybody'' 

*  Music  publishers  in  Vienna, 


AUSTRIA.  143 

from  taking  his  right  place,  as  our  friend  Hans  will  be  able  to  do,  be  it  a 
little  sooner  or  a  little  later.  During  the  months  of  April  and  May  I 
advise  him  to  remain  in  Vienna,  except  for  a  short  journey  to  Pest  at  an 
opportune  moment,  about  which  they  will  be  able  to  advise  him  at 
Vienna.  It  is  probable  that  he  will  earn  some  money  at  Pest,  and 
perhaps  at  Pressburg ;  but,  in  order  to  attain  this  end,  I  consider  it 
indispensable  for  him  to  take  a  more  permanent  footing  in  Vienna  than 
he  can  do  in  a  fortnight.  As  he  is  extremely  intelligent,  and  possesses 
all  that  is  needful  to  make  a  good  and  fine  career,  it  will  be  best  to  leave 
him  entirely  free  in  his  actions  and  movements  during  these  two  months, 
and  simply  to  help  him  to  bear  calmly  the  ill-chances  which  are  inevitable 
in  this  profession. 

My  cousin,  Dr  Eduard  Liszt,  will  remit  to  him  the  100  florins  which 
he  wants  at  once,  and  he  will  hold  another  100  at  his  disposal  later  on. 

Pray  believe  me,  Madame;  there  is  really  nothing  to  be  anxious 
about,  still  less  to  lament  over  Hans  in  regard  to  his  two  concerts  in  Vienna, 
and  I  hope  you  will  soon  get  news  which  will  help  to  make  you  share  the 
security  and  confidence  which  I  continue  to  hold. — Pray  believe  me, 
Madame,  with  every  expression  of  respectful  friendship,  yours  sincerely, 

F.  Liszt. 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Vienna,  11th  March  1853. 
Dearest  Mother, 

A  thousand  thanks  for  your  dear  letter,  which  has  done 
me  no  end  of  good  !  Certainly  if  there  ever  were  a  time  when  I  needed  it, 
this  letter  is  a  convincing  proof  that  I  have  no  cause  to  feel  myself  alone  and 
forsaken  !  I  have  had  to  go  through  much  here  up  to  the  present  time — 
vexations  enough  for  a  whole  year,  and  all  compressed  into  scarcely  three 
weeks.  Passion  week,  at  the  beginning  of  which  I  wrote  to  you,  brought 
me  so  many  unpleasant  experiences.  The  severe  influenza  from  which  I 
have  been  suffering,  and  which  is  now  over,  gave  me  an  opportunity  to 
rest  a  little,  which  was  no  small  advantage  to  me,  after  the  nervous 
excitement  into  which  events  now  past  had  thrown  me.  Much  as  I 
missed  the  care  which  would  have  enabled  me  to  throw  off  my  severe 
cold  much  sooner,  yet  I  was  comforted  for  the  want  of  it  by  the  thought 
that  you  could  not  hear  the  dreadful  concert  my  cough  made,  which 
forcibly  reminded  me  of  the  happier  days  of  my  childhood.  However  I 
hope  to  be  better  in  a  few  days  than  I  was  when  I  arrived  in  Vienna, 
ready  to  carry  on  my  career  with  new  and  fresh  energy,  with  the  feeling 


144  HANS   VON  BULOW. 

of  having  got  back  to  luy  old  self  again,  since  you  advise  me  to  do  this, 
and  will  not  forsake  me. 

Liszt  has  been  already  fully  informed  of  the  unfortunate  results  of 
my  first  two  concerts,  and  of  the  non-success  of  his  letters  of  introduction, 
etc. ;  of  course  not  by  me — that  would  not  have  been  proper — but  by 
Lbwy  and  Haslinger. 

Let  me  give  vent  here  to  my  anger  about  one  of  the  wretched  things 
that  happened  to  me,  of  which  I  have  gone  through  so  many ;  I  am 
certain  you  won't  misunderstand  my  feelings  about  it. 

That  rich  Councillor  X.  (the  composer),  for  whom  Liszt  has  done  so 
much — he  has  given  two  of  his  operas  in  Weimar,  having  touched  up  his 
last  score  a  la  Voltaire — and  to  whom  he  very  specially  introduced  me, 
did  not  go  to  my  first  concert,  although  I  had  already  played  in  his  salon 
one  evening.  One  morning  he  is  at  Haslinger's,  making  an  off'er  to  their 
publishing  firm,  when  I  accidentally  come  in ;  I  praise  his  songs  and  his 
opera  with  the  unfeigned  wellwishing  of  impartial  irony,  and  express  the 
wish  to  utilize  some  of  the  motifs  out  of  his  last  opera  for  a  piano  piece 
— that  very  morning  I  had  made  up  a  combination  of  them  in  involuntary 
reminiscences  at  the  piano — and  am  now  really  taken  up  with  doing  this, 
as  he  naturally  brought  me  the  opera  at  once,  the  other  day.  He  was 
visibly  touched,  and  when,  later  on,  Haslinger  reproached  him  for  not 
having  gone  to  my  concert  aftei  I  had  already  played  to  him,  he  took 
3  reserved  stalls,  but  did  not  pay  for  them  at  the  time.  And  I  saw  him 
at  my  second  concert  with  his  wife  and  child — the  concert-room  man  has 
been  to  him  several  times  to  ask  for  the  9  florins,  and  was  dismissed  the 
last  time  by  X.,  who  said  he  would  pay  me  the  money  himself.  As  X. 
has  sense  and  also  knows  me  a  little,  you  can  well  imagine  that  he  never 
intended  for  a  moment  to  commit  any  such  insolence.  But  he  did 
commit  that  of  asking  me  the  other  day  to  meet  Dreyschock,  who  was 
to  play  at  his  house.  Although  I  was  ill,  of  course  I  went,  in  order  not 
to  give  occasion,  by  my  absence,  to  any  misconstruction.  Except  for  this, 
X.  is  sensible,  amiable,  and  a  most  decent  fellow  ! 

One  who  stands  out  as  quite  an  exceptional  man,  not  only  in  himself, 
but  also  towards  me,  is  Eduard  Liszt,  cousin,  or  rather,  young  uncle  of 
the  real  one.  A  most  excellent  man,  one  in  whom  one  might  have 
absolute  confidence,  without  any  repeated  solicitation.  He  advanced  me 
some  money  also  lately  on  his  own  authority,  when  I  told  him  in  what 
want  I  was  placed. 

A  few  days  ago  Liszt  wrote  to  me  and  begged  me  to  do  him  a  service. 
It  is  a  diplomatic-musical  mission  to  a  Hungarian  Count,  who  has  ;i 
property  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Odenburg.  He  has  given  me  the 
necessary  30  florins  for  the  journey.     I  shall  start  in  a  few  days'  time 


AUSTRIA.  145 

if  the  weather  improves  a  little :  we  have  had  such  a  severe  winter  here 
as  has  not  been  known  for  years  in  Vienna  in  March,  the  snow  lying 
as  deep  as  it  was  in  Weimar  when  we  left,  and  the  railway  connection 
checked  by  little  delays.  I  shall  take  the  opportunity  of  playing 
in  the  Odenburg  theatre  (where  at  any  rate  I  shall  have  no  expenses),  in 
order  to  go  a  step  further  in  breaking  myself  of  the  lamplight  fever,* 
and  to  get  accustomed  to  playing  Hungarian  pieces,  on  which  I  am 
principally  reckoning  for  Pest,  where  the  outlook  is  a  much  more  cheerful 
one  for  me.  Of  course  I  must  first  let  Dreyschock  get  his  visit  over ; 
he  is  at  present  here,  but  wants  nevertheless  to  get  to  Pressburg  and 
Pest  before  me.  Dreyschock  is  an  homme-maehine,  the  personification 
of  absence  of  genius,  with  the  exterior  of  the  clown.  For  the  rest,  we 
have  no  personal  acquaintance  with  each  other. 

I  have  a  clear  conscience  that  I  have  not  got  into  bad  society.  Some- 
times I  have  not  any  at  all,  and  then  I  gladly  give  the  waiter  a  tip,  at 
the  coffee-house  where  I  sup,  simply  to  hear  a  friendly  "  Good  evening." 

I  like  Fraulein  Paoli  very  much ;  t  I  have  been  to  see  her  a  couple 
of  times ;  she  has  too  small  a  connection  to  be  able  to  be  of  use  to  me, 
and  I  don't  want  to  have  to  thank  her  for  little  *'  nothings  "  which  try  to 
make  believe  that  they  are  "  something."  In  spite  of  her  being  unmusical 
she  went  to  my  concert ;  I  had  sent  her  tickets ;  and  she  said  the  very 
same  thing  that  Fischhoff  afterwards  said  to  her  of  me — that  if  there 
were  any  fault  to  find  with  my  playing  it  was  that  I  put  too  much  thought 
into  it.  That  is  true,  and  it  is  also  true  that  it  is  a  fault,  because  it  leads 
into  a  fragmentary  and  unintelligible  rendering.  FischhoflT,  to  whom  I  had 
no  introduction,  has  nevertheless  been  most  friendly  to  me  all  the  same. 

The  Laubes,  to  whom  I  sent  tickets  for  my  concerts,  of  which  they 
made  use,  invited  me  lately  to  supper.  They  were  most  kind  to  me. 
Bauernfeld,  Dawison,  and  Baron  Stolzenberg  (the  real  Duke  of  Dessau) 
were  there.  If  Frau  v.  LUttichau  would  still  send  me  a  line  to  Laube, 
I  should  be  very  much  obliged  to  her ;  perhaps  then  he  would  let  me 
have  the  Burg-theatre  for  nothing. 

I  would  write  more  to  you,  but  it  tires  me  so ;  I  have  really  been 
very  unwell ;  the  thanks,  which  I  wanted  to  express  to  you  warmer  than 
ever  this  time,  are  silent,  but  deep  and  lasting.  Your  letter  really 
warmed  my  heart,  and  if  I  again  feel  myself  a  man  it  is  chiefly  owing  to 
you.  I  shall  write  to  my  father  directly  (to  Odenburg).  How  is  Isidore, 
and,  above  all,  how  are  you  yourself?     The  Milanollo|  is  here  now,  and 

*  Meaning,  playing  in  public. 

t  Elisabeth  GlUck,  1815-94,  an  Austrian  poetess  and  writer,  who  took  the 
name  of  Betty  Paoli. 

t  Teresa  MilanoUo,  1827,  a  firstrate  violinist. 

K 


146  HANS  VON   BtJLOW. 

absorbs  every  interest.  I  shall  not  give  my  third  concert  before  the 
24th  April,  which  is  a  Sunday,  the  only  day  when  a  concert  is  well 
filled.  Anyone  who  thus  gets  a  Sunday  is  really  a  "  Sunday  child,"  for 
these  days  are  few  and  are  generally  secured  a  year  in  advance. 

I  came  here  much  too  late,  was  also  announced  too  late,  and  thus 
gave  my  concerts  under  the  most  unfavourable  circumstances  imaginable. 
After  well  considering  everything  I  see  that  1 7nust  try  to  make  my  way 
here,  in  spite  of  all  hindrances,  or  even  because  of  them.  If  I  give  my 
concert  on  the  24th  April  with  orchestra  the  expenses  will  be  considerable, 
but  I  think  that  it  is  just  by  my  playing  with  orchestra  that  I  should  have 
a  success  :  the  trite  '  Concertstiicke '  of  Weber  and  Mendelssohn  were 
what  made  Dreyschock's  success.  After  the  way  I  have  begun,  I  cannot 
draw  back  from  the  position  I  took  up  at  my  first  debut.  How  sad  and 
discouraging  everything  here  was  for  me !  Even  people  of  the  most 
subordinate  talent  find  here  and  there  someone  to  give  them  a  lift  on,  or 
a  sincere  and  kindly-disposed  criticism ;  I  have  found  nothing  of  all  this. 
Not  a  soul  has  done  anything  con  amore  for  me !  And  how  careful  I 
have  been  to  be  everywhere  courteous  and  cautious !  .  .  .  My  introduc- 
tions !  I  wish  I  could  cut  all  the  letters  of  this  word  out  of  the  alphabet 
for  ever ! 

As  I  lay  in  bed  for  several  days  from  7  o'clock  in  the  evening  till 
2  o'clock  the  next  afternoon,  I  comforted  myself  immensely  by  reading 
Balzac  !  Never  could  it  have  been  more  suitable  than  in  my  present  mood, 
and  nothing  could  have  suited  that  mood  better !  At  the  same  time  I 
instrumentated  my  Caesar  March  afresh  out  of  my  head,  so  that  it  might  be 
played  by  Johann  Strauss'  son,  who  is  a  true  successor  to  his  father ; 
his  orchestra  is  firstrate  and  his  Waltzes  most  piquant.  I  have  also 
begun  a  couple  of  little  drawingroom  pieces.  Now  I  am  getting  an 
unconquerable  thirst  for  some  sort  of  amusement ! 

I  want  to  ask  your  advice  once  more  about  my  concert.  There  is 
still  plenty  of  time. 

Next  Sunday,  this  day  week  at  mid-day,  I  am  to  play  Bach's  Triple 
Concerto  with  Fischhoff  and  a  local  (good)  pianist  named  Dachs,  and 
orchestra.  That  means  certain  anticriticism  ;  at  the  same  concert  there  will 
be  a  Beethoven  Overture  and  a  Mendelssohn  Symphony — it  is  considered 
the  most  artistic  (also  really  the  best)  Concert-Society  that  there  is  here. 

The  only  official  Vienna  paper  speaks  decently  of  me,  but  on  the 
other  hand  gives  free  vent  to  its  rage  against  Liszt  {revers  de  la  medaille). 
...  So  of  course  I  can't  send  this  criticism  anywhere !  My  friend  of 
University  days,  Herzfeld,  has  been  very  nice  to  me,  inviting  me  to  a 
very  pleasant  party  at  his  parents',  and,  although  I  sent  him  plenty  of 
tickets,  he  also  took  some  more,  as  I  afterwards  learned. — It  is  11  o'clock ; 


AUSTBIA.  147 

by  this  time  I  have  been  already  asleep  on  other  nights.  I  am  tired  and 
weak;  I  have  written  at  such  length  in  order  that  you  may  not  be 
anxious  any  more. 

A  thousand  thanks  for  all  your  love  and  kindness  !     Good  night. 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Vienna,  Uth  April  1853, 
Dearest  Mother, 

Just  returned  from  my  6  days'  stay  at  Odenburg  I  find 
your  letter  here,  the  third  which  Frau  Bayer  delivers  to  me.  I  reply  at 
once,  to  give  you  good  news  which  will  make  you  happy — it  is  not  that 
my  position  has,  outwardly,  materially  improved  in  any  way,  or  allows 
of  anything  more  than  mere  hopes,  but  it  is  that  I  feel  myself  morally 
and  physically  pretty  well  and  brisk.  The  little  excursion  has  done  me 
a  great  deal  of  good.  I  have  breathed  again.  The  commission  I  had  to 
execute  for  Liszt  I  believe  I  have  done  to  his  satisfaction,  and  the  days 
passed  pleasantly  for  me.  This  was  how  it  was.  I  found  a  couple  of 
amiable,  cordial  men,  at  whose  house  I  generally  spent  most  of  the  day, 
like  Litolff  with  us.  Quite  by  chance  I  had  a  letter  of  introduction 
offered  me  to  a  well-to-do  Hungarian  family,  v.  Lenhard,  who  shewed  me 
such  kindness  and  sympathy  as  I  have  never  yet  experienced.  The  only 
outlay  which  they  expected  from  me  on  my  side  was  that  I  should  give 
a  few  music  lessons  for  nothing  to  their  little  girl  of  13,  who  was  very 
talented  and  intelligent  in  music,  though  a  fearfully  spoilt  child.  As  I 
wanted  to  breathe  for  a  few  days  far  away  from  my  thoroughly  detested 
Vienna,  I  improvised  a  concert  in  the  theatre  (half  to  kill  time),  by 
which  I  paid  my  expenses  and  my  stay.  I  was  in  an  excellent  mood, 
although  the  piano  was  not  up  to  much,  and  I  made  an  unprecedented 
furore.  I  had  a  small,  but  a  very  select,  audience,  almost  all  in  the 
boxes,  the  entire  Hungarian  haute  volee,  such  as  the  Erdbdy,  Pallavicini 
and  Teste  tics  families,  Count  Montenuovo  (son  of  Marie  Louise),  etc., 
people  who  otherwise  never  go  to  the  theatre.  The  ladies  applauded 
madly,  and  discovered  in  my  face  a  great  deal  of  likeness  to  Liszt.  .  .  . 
I  began  with  the  Volkshymne,*  a  captatio  henevoleniioe  of  the  garrison, 
and  was  called  forwards  ten  times  in  all.  I  had  to  play  the  Hungarian 
Melodies  over  again,  and  I  should  have  had  to  repeat  the  last  piece  also 
if  it  had  not  been  for  a  cabal  of  the  servants  of  the  theatre,  who  were 
tired  of  the  music,  and  prevented  the  curtain  being  raised  the  third  time. 

*  Popular  hymn. 


148  HANS   VON   bOlOW. 

...  I  am  very  glad  to  have  had  this  little  general  rehearsal  of 
Hungarian  pieces,  because  I  now  feel  quite  sure  of  my  things  for 
Presshurg  and  Pest.  I  am  at  present  waiting  for  an  answer  from 
Hunyadi,  whom  you  got  to  know  at  the  Arnims  in  the  elephant,*  as  to 
when  I  am  expected  there. 

Dreyschock  is  giving  concerts  at  this  moment  at  the  above  cities. 
Count  Leo  Festetics,  the  Intendant  of  the  Hungarian  National  Theatre,  a 
friend  of  Liszt's,  has  already  placed  his  theatre  and  a  third  of  the  net 
receipts  at  mydisposal — whereas  he  has  refused Dreyschock's  request  for  it. 
Whenever  I  come  back  from  Pest  I  think  I  shall  again  give  a  concert 
at  Odenburg,  as  I  should  then  have  quite  a  full  house — this  time 
the  concert  was  a  too  hurriedly  improvised  one.  The  afore-mentioned 
family  have  raved  about  me  to  such  a  degree  that  they  will  come  to  my 
concerts  here  also,  and  have  made  me  promise  to  sit  to  a  painter  there 
for  them. 

Now  to  the  most  important  thing.  I  have  not  yet  announced  a 
concert,  but  I  must  do  so  at  once.  As  I  stand  here  at  present,  I  slink 
away  from  the  scene  of  my  first  deeds  like  a  thief — and,  besides  all  else, 
honour  is  also  lost.  Liszt  has  strengthened  me  especially  in  this  respect, 
by  his  decided  wish  that  I  should  make  myself  a  firmer  footing  here 
above  everything.  This  I  must  do  before  the  end  of  the  season,  or  I  shall 
throw  my  whole  career  back  a  year.  I  must  therefore  now  give  a 
concert  that  will  make  its  mark,  and  therefore  it  must  be  with  orchestra ; 
I  hope,  I  am  convinced,  that  I  shall  then  succeed.  But,  as  I  said — the 
money  !  The  expenses  of  such  a  concert  will  amount  to  1 80  thalers  ! 
Although  I  am  certain  to  make  the  half  of  this  sum,  yet  I  must  first 
possess  it,  so  as  to  have  no  anxieties  of  such  a  material  nature,  if  I 
would  come  out  in  a  manner  worthy  of  myself  and  of  Liszt.  Freiherr  v. 
Miinch-Bellinghausen,t  who  called  upon  me,  said  to  me,  "  Orchestral  com- 
positions of  Liszt  would  have  tempted  many  unmusical  men,  that  is,  men 
lazy  about  concerts,  like  myself."  ...  If  I  give  a  concert  with  orchestra, 
that  is,  a  concert  in  which  I  have  such  immense  expenses,  then  I  could 
ask  the  Bayer  to  take  part  in  it ;  but  if  I  ask  her  to  help  in  quite  a 
simple  concert,  then  that  looks  like  sending  the  hat  round,  and  in  saying 
that  I  have  said  everything.  ...  At  this  moment  the  Milanollo  is 
mistress  of  the  ground,  being  the  fashion,  which  she  deserves  to  be,  for 
it  is  worth  very  little  ;  she  gives  on  Monday  her  6th  concert,  and 
then,  I  believe,  half  a  dozen  more.  ...  Of  course  I  must  let  her  get 
out  of  the  way  first.     And  by  that  time  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  Spring 


*  Refers  to  some  private  joke  or  nickname.     See  letter  to  Cornelius,  page  124. 
t  The  poet  Halm, 


ATTSTRIA.  149 

will  no  longer  be  here,  all  the  more  so,  as  today  the  thermometer  was 
below  freezing  point. 

This  very  day  I  will  write  to  Liszt  about  the  concert,  and  will  beg 
him  to  give  you  his  opinion  about  it,  as  he  does  not  yet  appear  to  have 
done  so.  .  .  .  It  would  have  been  much  the  best  if  I  had  ventured  to 
give  my  first  concert  with  orchestra.  I  cannot  tell  you  how  much  of  my 
heart's  blood  and  of  my  life  I  would  give  to  gain  a  victory,  and  I  shall 
never  need  one  as  I  do  in  this  decisive  year.  Perhaps  I  can  go  to  Pest 
beforehand,  and  save  there  as  much  as  I  shall  require  to  give  a  concert 
here.  This  would  have  to  take  place  on  the  28th  April  or  the  1st  May, 
and  I  must  decide  it  a  week  beforehand.  Don't  you  know  anybody  who 
could  lend  me  a  portion  of  this  sum  1  The  trade  I  am  now  driving  has 
truly  no  shadoio-aide,  but  only  a  side  of  dark  night.  It  is  horrible  !  To 
have  to  buy  the  means  to  authenticate  one's  existence  as  an  artist ! 

But  I  am  writing  to  you  confusedly  and  vaguely — perhaps  I  shall 
receive  the  long  looked-for  letter  from  Pest,  so  that  I  can  go  there  at 
once,  where  T  will  risk  everything,  so  that  with  the  motto  "  Liszt  et  mon 
talent "  I  may  rout  the  Bohemian  musician  from  the  field  ! 

Thun  has  inquired  many  times  how  things  were  going  with  me ; 
today  I  will  thank  him  for  it.  As  I  said — fi  des  lettres  de  recommenda- 
tion; should  this  mark  of  sympathy  move  me  to  tears,  or  can  it  pay  my 
way  for  me  ?  I  have  both  courage  and  energy  now,  that  is  true,  and  I 
am  also  en  train  to  play — (this  in  answer  to  your  last  letter  but  one, 
which  I  have  just  read  through  again) ;  only  give  me  a  room  to  play  in, 
and  some  sensible,  artistic  people  in  it ! 

As  regards  my  social  behaviour,  the  most  adverse  critic  could  find 
nothing  to  carp  at  in  it.  I  am  conscious  that  I  have  spoken  and  acted 
everywhere  prudently,  worthily,  as  a  gentleman,  and,  what  is  more,  as  an 
honest  man.  I  have  never  derogated  from  my  own  dignity,  and  was  so 
far  an  aristocrat  that  I  have  never  been  to  excesses  or  over-loud.  Don't 
laugh,  for  I  must  have  something  to  be  satisfied  with,  and  as  I  can't  be 
with  other  people  I  must  be  so  with  myself,  faute  de  mieux. 

Of  Balzac  I  have  read  '  Histoire  des  Treize,'  'L'Interdiction ' 
(splendid),  'Honorine'  (ditto),  and  I  know  not  what  besides;  but  I 
know  of  nothing  more  inciting,  nothing  more  calculated  to  take  the 
bitter  edge  off"  irony,  and  to  settle  all  its  elements  of  fermentation  down 
into  a  non-eS'ervescent  humour. 

I  lately  praised  Betty  Paoli  very  highly  in  my  diary.  The  next  time 
I  saw  her  she  did  not  please  me.  I  have  a  right  to  feel  superstitious — 
it  always  does  me  harm,  regularly  and  without  exception,  to  praise  the 
day  before  the  evening  has  come,  the  week  before  the  Sunday,  or  the 
month  before  the  first  of  the  next  has  arrived. 


150  HANS  VON   BULOW. 

And  as  regards  my  feelings  today  I  must  say,  Unherufen  /*  Be  at 
ease  about  me,  for  I  continually  feel  once  more  that  I  shall  not  so  easily 
lose  my  energy  again,  nor  let  my  desire  to  fight  with  or  against  the 
world  fade  away. 

I  lately  saw  the  Bayer  in  Grillparzer's  '  Hero.'  (She  had  sent  me  a 
ticket.)  You  cannot  imagine  anything  more  beautiful.  She  is  a  true 
artist,  and  more  than  highly  gifted — she  does  not  need  to  make  herself 
appear  so.  .  .  .  She  cuts  up  Saphir,  and  has  paid  him  neither  with 
money  nor  with  compliments. 

Above  all  else  do  write  to  me  now  something  about  yourself,  your 
life  in  Dresden,  and  how  you  are.  If  this  careless  style  of  letter  is  of 
any  interest  to  you,  I  will  often  write  to  you. 


TO  HIS  FATHER. 

Vienna,  20^/t  April  1853. 

Dearest  Father, 

Up  to  the  present  time  I  could  only  have  given  you  the 
worst  possible  tidings  about  my  first  journey  and  its  experiences  and 
results,  and  on  that  account  I  have  left  it  alone  altogether.  It  is  only 
now  that  my  good  humour  and  freshness  and  inborn  energy  enable  me, 
by  God's  grace,  to  raise  myself  to  a  more  cheerful  and  hopeful  mood, 
from  the  disconsolate  and  pitiable  state  in  which  my  first  endeavours 
after  distinction  had  placed  me — it  is  only  now  that  I  turn  again  to  you, 
who  are,  alas,  so  far  away  from  me,  and  whose  paternal  sympathy  I  cannot, 
from  political  circumspection,  ever  dare  to  beg  for  by  a  direct  letter. 

Bad  luck  has  followed  me  here  in  Vienna  with  a  pertinacity  and 
steadiness  which  never  seem  to  belong  to  good  luck.  I  came  here  with, 
absolutely  no  sanguine  illusions,  but  fate  has  even  surpassed  my  worst 
fears.  My  first  two  concerts,  on  the  15th  and  19th  March,  have  left  me 
"  down  "  both  in  purse  and  spirits,  and  richer  only  in  bitter  experience. 
I  have  learned  too  late  that  in  our  day  it  is  not  enough  to  have  a  talent, 
but  that  it  is  impossible  to  turn  one's  talent  into  fame  and  money  unless 
one  first  begins  by  an  outlay  of  money.  I  also  came  here  at  an  unlucky 
moment;  Dreyschock,  who  has  been  giving  concerts  for  15  years,  and 
who  has  thus  attained  great  certainty,  routine,  and  European  fame  of  a 
kind,  was  just  making  a  .  .  .  got-up  furore.  .  .  .  t 

*  The  nearest  English  equivalent  to  this  much  used  German  expressiou  is  '  low 
be  it  spoken.' 

+  Here  follows  a  full  description  of  his  experiences  and  state  of  depression,  the 
same  as  in  the  letter  to  his  mother. 


AUSTRIA.  151 

To  this  utter  depressiou  in  the  literal  sense  of  the  word  it  was  but 
natural — at  least  according  to  my  nature — that  a  reaction  should  follow. 
I  am  now  with  pride  and  joy  in  the  reactionary  state,  and  have  hope  and 
courage  once  more.  I  will  now  tell  you  the  principal  things.  ...  I 
am  now  daily  awaiting  tidings  from  Pest  as  to  whether  this  is  a  favour- 
able moment  for  giving  concerts  there — shall  then  write  to  Liszt,  who 
has  promised  me  letters  of  introduction  for  Pest,  which  will  be  sure  to 
be  of  more  use  to  me  than  those  to  Vienna,  as  Liszt's  name  is  revered  in 
an  almost  fanatical  manner  in  Hungary,  whereas  in  Vienna  they  seem  to 
wish  to  revenge  themselves,  by  their  indifference,  for  having  formerly 
been  so  fascinated  by  him. 


I  cannot  write  anything  of  my  impressions  of  Vienna.  I  keep  aloof 
from  everything ;  the  people  I  have  got  to  know  are  of  the  kind  of  whom 
"  distance  lends  enchantment  to  the  view." 

I  am  writing  a  couple  of  piano  pieces,  am  instrumentating  my  Caesar 
Overture — Johann  Strauss  plays  the  March  from  Caesar  at  his  suirees  with 
great  eclat, — and  I  trouble  myself  about  nothing.  Write  to  me  soon 
something  about  yourself. 


TO  HIS  FATHER. 

Vienna,  1th  May  1853. 


I  have  given  two  concerts  in  Pressburg. 

I  cannot  think  about  a  third  concert  in  Vienna  till  after  my  return 
from  Pest ;  and  that  only  if  it  does  not  appear  too  risky. 

My  first  book  of  songs  has  appeared  in  print.  The  second  will 
follow  in  a  fortnight  at  latest.  I  will  take  an  opportunity  of  sending 
them  to  Louise,  if  she,  in  her  amiability,  will  not  be  discouraged 
by  the  trouble,  from  seeking  out  their  beauties.  At  this  moment  I 
am  writing  a  Fantasia  on  one  of  Verdi's  operas,  '  Rigoletto ; '  his  best, 
which  really  shows  traces  of  great  talent.  Haslinger  will  publish  it 
directly  it  is  ready.  If  the  orchestra  wishes  to  be  paid,  it  must  submit 
to  the  wishes  of  the  pay-master.  Forgive  me  this  headachy  style  and 
medley. 


152  HANS  VON   BULOW. 


TO  HIS  FATHER. 

Vienna,  21st  May  1853. 

Dearest  Father, 

I  had  promised  you  to  write  again  before  starting  for  Pest — 
for  I  presume  you  received  my  last  letter,  in  which  I  thanked  you  for 
your  prompt  help,  and  begged  you  for  speedy  tidings  about  your  health, 
before  you  left  for  Stuttgart.  Well,  I  am  pretty  well  (low  be  it  spoken) 
in  body  and  spirit,  and  intend  to  start  for  Pest  tomorrow  morning  early 
(Sunday,  22nd  May),  the  city  which  I  have  long  regarded,  perhaps  too 
hopefully,  as  a  Canaan  after  the  Desert  of  Vienna.  Liszt  wrote  to  me 
a  few  days  ago,  sent  me  a  heap  of  letters  of  introduction,  and  advises  me 
to  stay  there  as  long  as  possible,  and  to  give  as  many  concerts  as  prac- 
ticable. Here  in  Vienna  it  would  be  madness  to  risk  another.  The 
charlatan  Therese  Milanollo  has  become  the  fashion  here ;  the  perfectly 
unrecognisable  disguise  under  which  Dame  Art  nowadays  travels  about. 
Her  old  father  has  been  on  the  watch  lately,  on  account  of  the  incom- 
petent sale  of  tickets. 

Herr  v.  Zedlitz  has  most  kindly  given  me  a  passport  from  the 
Weimar  Embassy  for  three  months ;  he  inquired  after  you,  and  I  do 
ditto  herewith  in  the  superlative  degree,  by  begging  you  to  let  me  know 
as  soon  as  possible  how  you  are  progressing  in  your  convalescence, 
whether  your  accident  has  had  any  bad  consequences,  etc.,  and  whether 
the  Spring  now  beginning  is  doing  you  good  ? 

I  cannot  write  much  to  you  today,  as  I  am  busy  with  packing,  letter 
writing,  and  putting  my  things  in  order,  for  I  am  leaving  part  of  them 
behind  me,  as  I  shall  come  to  Vienna  again  on  my  way  back  from  Pest, 
before  I  perhaps  go  to  Liszt  again  in  Weimar.  If  any  of  the  Hungarian 
nobility  should  invite  me  to  spend  a  couple  of  weeks  with  them  in  the 
country,  Liszt  has  told  me  to  accept  the  invitation.  I  shall  play  in  Pest 
the  first  time  in  the  Hungarian  National  Theatre,  during  the  entr'acte  of 
a  comedy  ;  after  that  Count  Leo  Festetics  will  make  a  contract  with  me 
for  further  performances.  As  I  have  a  lot  of  Hungarian  pieces  by  Liszt 
in  my  repertoire,  it  is  best  for  me  to  address  myself  to  the  national 
public. 

Yesterday  I  went  to  see  Thalberg,  and  heard  him  play.  Liszt  had 
most  urgently  desired  me  to  go  and  see  him,  and  I  was  very  much 
rewarded  by  the  real  pleasure  it  gave  me  to  hear  his  exquisitely  poetical 
and  thoroughly  finished  execution,  although  he  really  was  only  making 
little  musical  jokes.     He  is  an  out  and  out  aristocratic,  blas^  and  hard- 


AUSTRIA.  153 

living  man  of  the  world,  who  subsists  on  his  property.     Of   course  he 
lives  here  in  the  palace  of  Prince  Dietrichstein. 

Isidore  really  ought  to  write  to  me  again ;  I  do  beg  that  she  will. 
She  must  excuse  me,  because  I  really  have  not  time,  and  also,  what  is 
not  quite  synonymous,  that  I  am  not  in  the  mood  for  it. 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Le  lendemain  de  la  premiere  victoire. 

Budapest,  Ind  June  1853. 
Erzhbrzog  Stephan  Hotel.     78. 

Dearest  Mother, 

It  would  have  amused  you  to  be  present  yesterday  evening 
at  my  triumph  in  the  National  Theatre.  The  shouts  of  "  eljen  "  are 
still  ringing  in  my  ears,  and  they  sound  rather  better  than  the  German- 
Italian  "  bravo  " !  They  tell  me  there  has  not  been  such  a  fuss  made 
about  a  virtuoso  for  a  long  time.  Dreyschock,  my  latest  forerunner,  has 
been  completely  conquered  by  me  in  Pest,  which  has  given  the  lie  to 
Vienna  in  a  brilliant  manner.  We  will  now  wait  and  see  what  the 
critics  say ;  I  daresay  the  German  ones  will  find  fault  because  I  played 
in  a  Hungarian  theatre  (just  as  though  Pest  were  a  German  town  !),  and 
here  such  a  petty  rivalry-swindle  about  nationahty  obtains.  I  am  going 
on  further  today  (3rd  June),  as  I  was  yesterday  interrupted  by  the 
fathers  of  my  friends  Joachim  and  Singer,  who  came,  together  with  a  lot 
of  other  people,  to  wish  me  joy  of  my  "  triumph."  It  was  an  unparalleled 
triumph,  according  to  what  everyone  says. 

I  have  not  the  presumption  to  imagine  that  this  triumph  is  my  own 
work.  The  greatest  share  of  it  is  due  to  Liszt's  name,  to  his  divine 
compositions — the  Hungarian  piece  with  orchestral  accompaniment,  and 
the  '  Rondo  alia  Turca '  on  motifs  from  Beethoven's  '  Ruines  d'Athenes ' 
(also  by  him).  But,  on  the  other  hand,  I  did  not  play  badly  ;  there  was 
fire  in  my  playing,  I  felt  more  sure  than  I  have  ever  done  before,  and  of 
course  I  played  by  heart  (for  Erkel  wanted  the  score  to  conduct  from), 
and  with  perfect  freedom  and  security  ;  every  nuance,  every  accelerando 
or  ritardando  was  so  thoroughly  understood  and  followed  by  the  superb 
conductor  and  the  splendid  orchestra,  that  it  was  a  pleasure  to  listen  to 
such  an  accompaniment.  How  quickly  the  public  took  it  up,  you  have 
no  idea  !  The  boxes  and  galleries  were  full  to  overflowing  ;  the  pit 
empty — none  of  the  bourgeoisie.  I  was  perpetually  interrupted  by 
applause — not  applause,  but  wild  cheers.     I  was  compelled  to  repeat  the 


154  HANS   VON    BULOW. 

Frisclika  *  of  the  Hungarian  Rhapsody.  .  .  .  All  the  people  I  have  seen 
today,  both  ladies  and  gentlemen,  are  still  overflowing  with  enthusiasm 
for  Liszt  and  myself.  That  such  a  public  still  exists — this  has  given  me 
enormous  encouragement  both  for  my  playing  and  composition. 


ith  June. 
I  have  so  many  letters  to  write  to-day. 

The  two  brothers  Doppler,  conductors,  composers,  and  superb 
flautists,  are  making  a  short  pleasure  trip  to  Germany.  I  am  sending 
them  also  to  Lipinski — they  are  Poles  by  birth.  If  Frau  v.  Ltittichau 
can  work  it  for  them  to  play  at  Court  she  should  do  so  for  their 
sakes. 

The  Magyar  press  is  full  of  enthusiasm ;  they  call  me  great,  higlily 
gifted.  No  criticism ;  enthusiasm.  The  official  paper  praises  me  very 
much,  speaks  at  some  length  about  Liszt  and  myself,  and  hopes  that  I 
shall  play  again  soon  and  frequently.  And  yet,  in  spite  of  Liszt's 
letter  of  introduction.  Count  Festetics  has  never  been  to  see  me  again, 
and  postponed  the  day  of  my  debut  arbitrarily,  without  letting  me  know 
a  word  about  it,  letting  me  run  backwards  and  forwards  all  that  long 
way  to  the  theatre-offices  about  the  arrangements  ever  so  many  times, 
and  so  on.  I  expect  he  will  treat  me  just  the  same  about  the  money 
matters — I  had  a  feeling  of  scruple  that  kept  me  from  mentioning  this 
matter  to  him,  because  Liszt  had  introduced  me  to  him.  With  Liszt's 
introductions  I  have  very  little  luck.  Herr  v.  Augusz  has  started  on  a 
circular  tour  through  the  country  with  the  Archduke,  and  will  not  be 
back  till  next  week.  He  was  most  kind  on  my  first  visit,  and  spoke  to 
me  of  Liszt's  letter,  which  gave  him  great  pleasure,  and  in  which  Liszt 
introduced  me  as  his  heritier  et  successeur. 

The  Archbishop  of  Pest,  to  whom  Liszt  also  gave  me  an  introduction, 
has  meanwhile  become  a  Cardinal,  and  lives  at  Gran.  Herr  Guido  v. 
Karatsonyi,  a  great  lover  of  horses,  a  tall,  handsome  young  man,  but  very 
stout,  and  who  has  lately  become  a  millionaire  through  his  wife,  has 
been  very  pleasant  to  me.  Yesterday  I  dined  there  with  Capellmeister 
Erkel.  Very  agreeable.  I  cannot  play  at  the  Nemzeti  szinhaz  (the 
!N"ational  Theatre)  before  Monday  week.  So  meanwhile  a  private 
concert  must  be  arranged.  At  the  '  Hotel  d'Europe,'  where  Dreyschock 
gave  his  concerts,  the  Chinese  Chungakai,  etc.,  are  going  to  appear,  so  I 
must  try  to  get  the  Lloyd  salon.  Dr.  Ungar,  the  barrister,  and  corre- 
spondent  of   the   Augsburger   (an   intimate   friend   of    the  Stirnbrand 

*  The  '  Frisclika '  is  the  quick,  lively  second  movement  that  follows  the  slow 
movement,  or  '  Lassau,'  in  the  Hungarian  gipsy  music. 


AUSTRIA.  155 

family,  and  therefore  knowing  me  already  by  hearsay  from  Stuttgart), 
will  help  me  to  get  this  room  :  I  shall  devote  a  portion  (a  third)  of  the 
net  proceeds  to  a  female  institution  founded  by  ladies  of  the  aristocracy 
here. 

The  concert  will  be  announced  beforehand  for  Wednesday  noon,  or 
else  half-past  four.  ...  I  think  I  shall  then  give  a  portion  of  the 
receipts  of  the  fourth  concert  to  a  national  institution,  the  Conservatoire 
here.     Well,  I  will  not  anticipate  too  far  beforehand. 

Today  I  dine  with  Dr.  Hunyadi,  and  tomorrow  with  the  violinist 
Ridley-Kohue.  In  the  evenings  we  (a  few  young  people)  generally  go 
and  hear  the  gipsies,  and  it  amuses  me  as  much  as  it  teaches  me. 
Occasionally  I  go  to  the  circus  or  a  summer  theatre,  and  not  merely  for 
opera,  but  also  to  hear  plays.  I  then  take  a  translation  with  me,  and 
delight  myself  in  the  innate  nobility  of  the  people,  and  the  way  they 
seem  to  be  no  mere  actors;  or  else  I  go  to  hear  the  lady  pianists  here, 
or  go  to  Dr.  Ungar,  or  Hunyadi,  etc. 

I  get  up  at  6  o'clock  in  the  morning,  if  not  at  5,  practise  and  write  ; 
at  night  I  don't  go  to  bed  later  than  11  or  12  o'clock.  The  climate  is 
as  healthy  as  the  Vienna  one  is  ruinous.  I  have  felt  well  since  the  first 
moment  I  got  here.  The  city  is  not  merely  beautiful,  but  enchanting  in 
the  highest  degree  :  the  hilly  portion,  Ofen,  is  joined  to  Pest  by  a  grand 
chain-bridge  over  the  majestic  river,  and,  from  the  fortress  there,  one  has 
an  entrancing  view  at  sunset  of  the  palaces  at  Pest,  and  its  immense 
squares  and  broad  streets.  This  place  is  the  comfort  of  youth,  just  as 
Vienna  is  the  convenient  place  for  old  age.  Here  I  should  like  to  stay, 
and  I  could  do  so.  Pest  is  a  point  won  for  me.  If  everything  else 
failed,  and  I  liked  to  establish  myself  here  as  a  pianist,  or  thought  of 
becoming  Inteudant  of  the  National  Theatre,  you  might  congratulate 
yourself  as  much  as  if  you  had  brought  a  daughter  happily  to  a  husband. 

Yesterday  I  met  Toros  Janos,  the  editor  of  the  Pesti  Naplo ;  he 
came  up  to  me,  pressed  both  my  hands  very  efiusively,  and  assured  me 
that  I  was  a  second  Liszt. 

Thus  much  is  certain,  that  next  winter  I  am  to  come  here  again,  at 
the  most  favourable  time,  when  all  the  aristocracy  is  still  here,  and  then 
I  shall  be  able  to  make  money,  whereas  now  it  is  too  late.  It  is  to  be 
hoped  that  I  shall  make  up  a  part  of  my  expenses  here,  for  I  am  terribly 
in  want  of  money. 

I  pay  1  gulden  24  kreutzer  a  day  for  my  room,  which  is,  compara- 
tively speaking,  not  too  dear  ;  the  room  is  a  large  one ;  the  piano  I  have 
for  nothing,  a  good  grand  by  Tomaschek.  At  the  concerts  I  play  on  a 
Streicher. 

Now  don't  expect  any  more  long  letters  from  me,  if  things  go  well, 


156  HANS   VON   BULOW. 

but  little  notes  frequently.  I  received  your  letter  sent  on  from  Vienna 
directly  after  my  arrival  here ;  I  cannot  answer  it,  as  I  have  no  time  just 
now  to  read  it  through  again. 

If  only  living  were  not  so  dear,  and  people  did  not  cheat  me  so  !  I 
hope  you  are  well,  and  that  you  are  pleased  with  me  and  about  me. 
Enfin  I 

Farewell  for  today  ;  I  kiss  your  hand,  and  am. 

Your  grateful  and  loving  son, 

BuLow  JInos  Guido. 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Le  revers  de  la  medaille. 

Pest,  \bth  June  [1853]. 
Dearest  Mother, 

My  triumphant  eight-page  letter,  which  was  somewhat  very 
hie  en  herbe*  was  finished  long  before  the  receipt  of  your  last,  but  I  did 
not  want  to  send  it  off  until  I  could  add  a  consoling  word  about  the  rest 
of  the  episode  of  my  first,  and  possibly  also  my  last,  virtuoso  wanderings 
in  Pest. 

20th  June. 

The  hopes  I  then  formed  have  not  been  realised.  I  am  more  than 
ever  disheartened,  not  with  regard  to  my  talent  and  its  ultimate  worth 
in  the  eyes  of  intelligent  people — musicians  as  well  as  the  papers  always 
speak  of  me  in  tones  of  the  highest  esteem — but  with  regard  to  my 
outward  success,  and  the  chances  of  my  ever  being  able  to  make  an 
independent  position  for  myself  by  my  profession,  or  even  to  keep 
myself.  So  that  this  prospect  makes  me  really  disgusted  with  life. 
Such  special,  constant  ill-luck  follows  me,  hanging  over  nie  like  a  curs'i, 
that  I  must  allow  that  the  utmost  exertion  of  my  powers  will  never 
bring  me  to  the  result  which  a  hundred-times  less  talented  hlagueur 
and  charlatan  attains  by  his  playing. 

I  have  vainly  tried  as  yet  to  write  to  Liszt  in  a  calm  manner,  for  at 
the  end  of  this  miserable  journey  I  have  earned  nothing  but  the  most 
bitter  experience,  too  late  to  be  salutary, — the  knowledge  that  I  am 
too  good,  too  honest,  to  be  a  Virtuoso;  and  this  the  wife  of  the  Postal 
Secretary  at  Weimar  also  thought. 

It  is  most  odious  to  me  to  have  to  go  back  to  what  is  past — but 

*  Premature. 


AUSTRIA.  157 

1  must  and  will  tell  you  all  about  it,  so  that  j'ou  may  not  misunderstand 
me,  or  imagine  all  sorts  of  indefinite  things. 

I  have  again  had  real  bad  luck  with  Liszt's  introductions.  The 
Intendant  of  the  Hungarian  theatre  has  not  once  shown  me  the 
commonest  civilities. 

He  further  sent  me  word  that  I  could  play  in  the  theatre  immediately 
on  my  arrival :  instead  of  keeping  his  word  he  lets  me  wait  twelve  days, 
incurring  all  sorts  of  unnecessary  expenses  at  a  dear  hotel,  where  I  am 
stuck  fast. 

After  my  first  extraordinary  success,  which  ought  to  have  been  taken 
advantage  of  at  once — he  could  have  done  it,  it  would  have  been  the 
making  of  me — he  refuses  me  the  theatre,  and  says  I  cannot  play  again 
before  the  1 3th  June,  on  account  of  repertoire  and  other  trumpery  excuses. 
The  press  speaks  enthusiastically  of  me,  but  the  public  does  not  believe  in 
my  success,  because  I  don't  give  a  second  concert.  I  must  now  make  up 
my  mind  to  announce  a  private  concert.  .  .  .  l^o  room  to  be  had  for  it. 
All  the  large  places  were  burnt  down  in  the  Revolution ;  there  was  no 
choice  for  me  but  the  room  of  a  Merchant  Company  of  the  Pester  Lloyd, 
who  have  often  lent  it  for  similar  purposes.  Although  I  offered  to  play 
for  the  benefit  of  the  pension-fund  of  the  Company,  yet  they  refused  me 
the  room — perhaps  and  probably  because  I  had  played  in  the  National 
Theatre  and  not  in  the  German  one.  But  I  was  obliged  to  give  a  private 
concert,  and  to  let  people  hear  pieces  which  I  could  not  give  in  the  theatre; 
I  therefore  gave,  or  rather  I  bought,  a  concert  in  an  unfavourable  and 
expensive  room,  the  salon  of  the  '  Hotel  zum  Tiger,'  which  had  not  been 
used  for  concerts  before  that  time.  .  .  .  The  Magyar  press,  without  excep- 
tion, made  an  outcry  against  the  inhospitality  of  the  Lloyd  people,  and 
took  me  up  with  the  greatest  warmth.  It  is  impossible  to  tell  you  what 
this  arrangement  cost  me  in  time,  trouble,  expenditure  of  good  temper 
and  energy  in  all  these  wretched  little  trifles.  .  .  .  Impossible  to  do  every 
individual  thing  one's  self,  and  enormously  expensive  to  get  anyone  else 
to  do  them  for  one.  I  will  never  give  a  concert  again  without  a  valet 
or  a  secretary,  perhaps  not  even  with  one,  or  rather,  certainly  not.  How 
many  hours  I  have  been  running  about,  how  many  disagreeables  I  have 
encountered,  to  find,  at  the  end  of  it  all,  that  two  singers  who  had  pro- 
mised to  sing  for  me  left  me  in  the  lurch  !  Enough.  ...  I  played,  and 
played  Liszt's  Lucrezia  and  Patineurs  (and  I  played  quite  alone)  with  an 
energy  and  bravura  that  astonished  myself.  Criticism  was  again  most 
favourable.  And  yet  the  National  Theatre  was  not  full  on  the  13th 
June,  and  Festetics  put  on  the  programmes  "  utolso  "  (for  the  last  time) 
without  asking  me.     I  had  the  arrangement  of  the  Caesar  March  played, 


158  HANS  VON   BOLOW. 

which  was  liked,  and  I  played  the  Beethoven  E  flat  major  Concerto  for 
the  first  time,  but  as  though  I  had  played  it  I  don't  know  how  many 
times  before,  and  I  had  a  very  grateful  and  attentive  audience  (rather 
remarkable  for  a  classical  piece  of  music  in  a  theatre !),  and  was  inter- 
rupted with  tremendous  applause  in  the  Adagio  (a  thing  which  has  very 
seldom  happened  anywhere).  On  the  other  hand  Liszt's  Fantasia  from 
the  Prophete  did  not  please,  on  account  of  the  great  similarity  of  the 
motif  of  the  Hymn  with  a  song  that  is  not  popular  in  Pest.  Chopin's 
Polonaise  also  fell  flat,  whereas  a  Hungarian  Rhapsody  of  Liszt's  quite 
excited  them. 

People  advise  me  to  give  one  more  concert  in  the  '  Hotel  d'Europe,' 
when  the  Chinese  are  gone.  The  expenses  would  be  too  great.  The 
"  friends  "  of  Liszt  don't  trouble  themselves  about  me.  What  heaps  of 
people  (and  chatter)  I  have  had  to  put  up  with,  who  call  themselves 
acquaintances  of  mine,  and  who  worry  me  with  their  advice,  their  tales, 
their  self-adulation  and  pretensions,  to  the  very  utmost  limits  of  a 
restrained  impatience !  And  before  me  the  prospect  of  undisguised 
misery,  the  sense  of  the  strongest  need  of  help,  the  certainty  that,  sooner 
or  later,  I  must  come  to  grief, — I  with  my  talent,  intelligence,  and 
knowledge  ! — I  feel  a  hell,  a  perfect  hell,  around  me  and  within  me.  If 
only  a  gleam  of  hope  did  not  come  now  and  then,  convulsing  me  afresh 
by  its  flicker — if  I  could  at  last  regard  myself  as  dead  and  buried,  and 
let  myself  slowly  die  away,  I  know  not  how,  ofi"ering  a  passive  resistance 
to  fate  of  every  kind !  But  I  accept,  when  an  invitation  comes  which 
lays  upon  me  the  duty  giving  pleasure  to  others  by  my  playing.  Dr. 
Hunyadi  asked  me  lately  to  play  the  Trio  (dedicated  to  Liszt)  by  a 
(German  named  Volkmann.  This  I  did,  and  enchanted  the  people.  No 
one  had  played  the  last  movement  with  the  passion  and  energy  with 
which  I  filled  it  (with  Liszt's  performance  of  it  in  my  mind) ;  the  composer 
was  surprised  at  the  efi'ect  of  his  own  work ;  people  admired  my  playing, 
the  papers  noticed  it ;  and  yet  all  this  does  not  bring  me  the  least  help, 
but  only  fresh  envy,  slanderers  wherever  possible,  enemies.  What 
would  I  not  give  to  be  in  some  little  village,  with  some  green  before  my 
window,  a  piano  in  my  room,  some  unwritten  music-paper,  a  few  not 
ill-natured  people  and  a  faithful  dog  about  me,  and  peace,  and  a  respite 
from  these  constant  irritations ! 

I  have  read  part  of  Carus'  "  Symbolism  of  the  human  form."  It  is 
capitally  written,  and  he  seems  to  be  very  clear  on  the  subject.  The 
contents  are  firstrate  and  very  practical 

Pest  is  marvellously  beautiful,  the  neighbourhood  is  lovely,  and  I 
must  enjoy  some  more  of  it  at  all  events  if  possible. 

Farewell,  I  am  talking  rubbish — and  have  sighed  myself  tired. 


AUSTKIA.  159 

TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

[Pest,  Jiihj  1853.] 
Grosse  Bruckgasse.     12. 
Dearest  Mother, 

It  was  not  possible  for  me  to  thank  you  sooner  for  the 
nobleness  and  touching  goodness  which  you  have  once  more  shown  me 
by  your  comforting  letter  and  the  help  in  money  which  I  so  greatly 
needed.  What  with  the  removal  from  the  hotel,  with  all  its  little 
attendant  troubles,  the  hunting  for  a  cliambre  introuvable,  and  all  the 
work  I  had  to  do  in  preparation  for  another  debut  at  the  National 
Theatre,  to  say  nothing  of  the  fearful,  tropical  heat,  and  the  continual 
and  violent  recurrence  of  my  headaches — my  poor  overworked  brain  was 
confused  to  such  a  degree  that  I  was  absolutely  incapable  of  thinking  or 
writing.  My  debut  took  place  yesterday,  Monday,  and  was  an  even 
more  brilliant  success  than  the  previous  one,  but  from  a  pecuniary  point 
the  result  was  equally  nil.  I  got  your  last  letter  just  before  the  concert, 
as  I  was  dressing  ! 

Wednesday. 

I  was  just  going  to  sit  down  to  my  writing-table  again,  when  Dr. 
Hunyadi  came,  bringing  me  your  letter  to  him,  in  which  you  begged  for 
tidings  of  me.  I  beg  pardon  a  thousand  times  for  being  such  an  anxiety 
to  you.  It  grieves  me  to  the  heart  that  you  have  so  little  satisfaction  in 
me  !  And,  on  one  side,  I  make  myself  many  reproaches  and  conscience- 
pricks  that  I  have  cost  you  such  a  lot  of  money  (for  it  is  hard  enough  to 
earn  it),  without  any  immediate  prospect  of  being  soon  able  to  attain  an 
independent  position ;  whilst,  on  the  other  side,  the  consciousness  of  my 
more  than  ordinary  talent — I  can  even  say  this,  after  the  bitter  experi- 
ences and  the  great  discouragement  I  have  had — gives  me  courage  and 
hope  once  more  that  I  shall  eventually  be  able  to  attain  money  and  a 
position. 

Please  don't  mind  if  I  jump  about  from  one  thing  to  another,  and 
write  just  as  my  dull,  stupid  brain  dictates. 

To  begin  with,  my  address  is  now — Pest,  Grosse  Briick-Gasse  No.  12 
(3rd  ^tage),  c/o  Herr  Marastoni.  He  is  an  Italian,  and  is  the  founder 
and  head  of  a  School  of  Painting,  and  his  wife  provides  attendance  and 
looks  after  me,  and  in  case  I  were  ill  I  am  certain  of  being  well  taken  care 
of  by  her.  My  room  has  only  one  window,  but  it  is  not  a  small  room, 
has  a  fair  amount  of  light,  and  good  furniture ;  the  window,  a  good  big 
one,  looks  into  the  courtyard ;  the  house  is  one  of  the  finest  in  the  inner 


160  HANS  VON  BULOW. 

town.  The  shady  side  of  the  picture  is — insects  at  night,  and  piano- 
playing  in  the  house  the  whole  day,  but,  as  I  have  plenty  to  do,  and  the 
sun  shines  bright,  and  I  think  I  shall  again  learn  to  live  comfortably,  I 
have  already  done  somewhat  towards  throwing  off  the  evils  of  both  day 
and  night. 

Through  your  kindness,  which  enables  me,  after  paying  every  debt, 
to  live  on  another  fortnight  free  from  care,  and  to  become  once  more  at 
ease  both  in  body  and  mind,  I  shall  arrive  at  the  point  of  writing  to 
Liszt  again  one  of  these  days.  He  strongly  advised  me  in  his  last  letter 
to  reconnoitre  and  examine  minutely  every  chance  here,  to  see  whether 
this  would  suit  as  a  permanent  residence,  and  whether,  after  giving  some 
more  concerts  in  Vienna  at  a  more  favourable  time,  I  could  establish 
myself  here  next  winter  as  a  music  teacher,  and  try  at  the  same  time  to 
obtain  some  post  in  the  Hungarian  or  German  Theatre.  There  is  much 
to  be  said  for  this  idea,  and  I  think  that,  if  I  should  still  be  alive  then, 
and  no  favourable  change  had  taken  place  in  my  life's  destiny,  it  would 
be  the  wisest  thing  for  me  to  earn  my  living,  and  save  something,  by 
spending  a  couple  of  years  here,  and  travelling  round  about  in  the  country 
giving  lessons,  or  otherwise  working  as  hard  as  I  could. 

Baron  Augusz,  the  vicegerent,  has  invited  me  to  play  after  all  in  the 
German  Theatre.  This  the  Government  would  like,  because  they  regard 
the  theatre  as  one  of  the  principal  means  of  Germanizing  the  capital  of 
the  country. 

The  Germans,  represented  by  Lloyd,  behaved  badly  to  me  at  first. 
On  this  point  I  shall,  moreover,  also  have  my  revenge.  Augusz,  that  is 
to  say,  the  highest  civil  authority,  has  only  to  give  a  hint  to  the  society, 
and  they  must  lend  me  their  room,  in  which  I  will  then  arrange  an 
invitation  concert,  and  will  play  the  Trio  (dedicated  to  Liszt)  by  Volk- 
mann  the  Saxon,  who  lives  here,  and  who  is  a  young  composer  of  great 
mark ;  I  will  also  play  Beethoven  and  Bach ;  in  short,  I  intend  to  earn 
a  grand  musical  success. 

I  am  jumping  now  from  extreme  to  extreme,  from  the  most  calmly 
inconsolable  apathy  to  the  most  versatile  schemes — and  all  because  I  am 
again  in  possession  of  a  few  gulden,  and  therefore  of  the  possibility  of 
living  without  anxiety  as  to  the  wherewith. 

How  can  I  thank  you  for  your  love  and  kindness,  and  for  your  belief 
in  me  and  in  my  future  as  an  artist,  when  I  myself  was  near  despairing 
about  it !  Have  not  papa  and  my  sister  received  any  letters  from  me  in 
the  middle  of  last  month  ?  I  cannot  understand  their  silence.  Tomorrow 
I  will  send  them  news  of  me,  to  the  address  you  have  given  me.  As  soon 
as  I  know  anything  more  definite  about  myself  I  will  write  to  you  at 
once.     If  I  receive,  by  Augusz'  help,  a  suitable  pecuniary  oEex  from  the 


AUSTRIA.  161 

German  Theatre-director,  say  about  100  gulden  guaranteed,  then  I  shall 
play  in  any  case. 

Meanwhile  I  am  thinking  over  the  advice  that  has  been  given  me,  to 
give  concerts  at  some  of  the  Hungarian  Baths,  or  in  other  Hungarian 
towns.  If  I  do  this,  my  piano  playing  shall  be  by  no  means  a  game  of 
hazard  [a  hazard  playing]. 

For  Armgart  [v.  Arnim]  I  am  writing  six  songs,  entitled  'Die 
Entsagende,'  by  Karl  Beck.  If  only  I  had  a  publisher !  Possibly  I 
may  also  have  an  opportunity  of  publishing  some  pianoforte  pieces  here 
(without  any  Opus  number),  without  payment. 

Perhaps,  with  aU  your  love  for  me,  it  will  do  you  good  to  see  that  I 
am  again  so  active  and  industriously  disposed.  As  regards  the  piano  I 
assure  you  that  you  have  no  need  to  be  ashamed  of 

Your  very  loving,  grateful  son. 


CARLSRUHE— OTLISHAUSEN 


CHAPTER  VIII. 
CARLSR  UHE—  OTLISHA  USEN. 

AUTUMN    1853, 

Whilst  Biilow  was  writing  cheerfully  to  his  mother  about  his  father  (on 
the  19th  September  1853),  the  latter  had  already  passed  away  from  this  mortal 
life  three  days  previously.  The  apoplectic  seizure  which  he  had  had  half  a 
year  before  was,  in  spite  of  the  apparent  gradual  return  of  his  physical  powers, 
a  precursor  of  his  coming  death. 

Eduard  von  Biilow  was  spared  a  long  illness,  and  on  the  16th  of  September 
he  was  called  quietly  and  suddenly  to  his  rest.  He  was  taken  away  whilst 
in  the  midst  of  a  great  work  at  which  he  was  labouring  indefatigably — the 
biographies  of  great  men  from  all  epochs  of  history. 

A  whole  week  elapsed  before  poor  Hans,  free  from  all  sad  presentiment, 
learned  the  tidings  of  his  irreparable  loss ;  as  his  family,  not  knowing  where  he 
was  at  the  moment,  were  unable  tu  communicate  with  him.  The  overpowering 
grief  which  seized  him  when  the  sad  tidings  reached  him,  shows  that  the  son 
realised  the  full  depth  of  the  loss  that  had  come  upon  him.  The  next  letter 
was  written  while  he  was  still  unconscious  of  what  had  befallen  him  ;  but 
the  ones  immediately  following  show  us  Billow's  utter  despair. 


TO  RICHARD  POHL.* 

Carlsruhe,  ^Oth  Se2)tember  1853. 
Dear  Friend, 

You  are  just  now  being  regularly  bombarded  with  letters 
from  Carlsruhe.  Yesterday  your  friend  W.  Kalliwodat  will  have  written 
to  you ;  early  this  morning  Liszt  has  been  settled  at  his  writing-desk  for 

*  Richard  Pohl  (born  1826),  a  writer  on  music.  Under  the  nom  de  plume 
"  HojAit"  he  was  a  constant  contributor  to  the  Netie  Zeitschrift  fiir  Musik  during 
the  fifties  ;  aad  he  was  one  of  the  earliest  partisans  of  the  Wagner-cultus. 

t  Wilhelm  Kalliwoda  (born  1827),  Kapellmeister  in  Carlsruhe. 


166  HANS   VON   BiJLOW. 

you,  and  this  evening  I  take  up  the  pen  for  the  first  time  here,  not  to 
give  you  any  news,  but  simply  to  tell  you  how  delighted  I  am  that  Liszt 
will  see  his  wish  realised,  of  inviting  your  wife*  and  yourself  to  the 
Musical  Festival,  and  also  to  beg  you  to  turn  your  back  on  Dresden  and 
your  face  to  Carlsruhe  as  soon  as  possible.  Your  presence  here  will  be 
not  so  much  "  utilis  "  as  "  dulcis  "  in  the  highest  degree.  We  shall  have 
to  scratch  the  backs  of  the  Carlsruhers  a  little,  that  is  to  say,  in  an 
insinuating  and  Pohl-ish.  manner.  The  artists-without-art  here,  specific 
musicians,  are  still  rejoicing  in  such  a  paradisiacal  simplicity,  such  an 
utter  immovability  by  the  Ninth  Symphony,  Tannhauser,  &c.,  that  it  is 
high  time  that  they  should  be  instructed  in  this  specific  music  by  the 
un^ecific  musicians.  The  only  thing  which  Carlsruhe  has  set  forth  of 
itself,  but  also  the  one,  unique  thing,  is  Gluck's  Armida,  which  will  be 
given  here  on  the  30th.  Well,  I  fancy  you  will  come  a  little  sooner 
than  that.  Yesterday  we  were  in  Baden.  Liszt  has  engaged  Frau 
Heinefetter  for  the  arias,  chosen  by  her,  from  '  Titus '  and  the  '  Proph^te.' 
Joachim  will  play  his  own  Concerto  and  Bach's  Chaconne,  In  case 
your  wife  would  like  to  know  exactly  what  is  allotted  tocher  harp,  I  can 
tell  you  at  once  briefly, — the  Overture  to  '  Struensee,'  the  Bridal  Song 
from  '  Lohengrin,'  and  a  couple  of  numbers  from  Berlioz'  '  Komeo  and 
Juliet.' 

Kalliwoda  and  Will,  the  first  violin,  are  likewise  rejoicing  at  the 
thought  of  your  speedy  arrival.  With  regard  to  the  programme  they 
hold  some  prejudices,  as  somewhat  exclusive  devotees  of  a  worn-out 
Mendelssohnianism.  As  Liszt  was  away  at  Mannheim  and  Darmstadt, 
they  honoured  me  with  their  confidences  on  this  point — Kalliwoda,  who 
is  a  charming  man,  less  than  the  other. 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Carlsruhk,  25^7i  September  1853. 
Dearest  Mother, 

I  am  quite  inconsolable.  Nothing  could  ever  have  afi'ected 
me  more  deeply ;  never  could  a  blow  be  harder  than  this,  unexpected  as 
it  was,  indeed  not  even  feared. 

I  was  so  infinitely  happy  in  the  prospect  of  travelling  with  Liszt  in 


•  Johanna  Eytb,  afterwards  Fran  Pohl  (1824-70),  a  celebrated  harp-player  ;  was 
engaged  at  Weimar,  and  afterwards  at  Carlsruhe, 


CARLSRUHE— OTLISHAUSEN.  167 

Switzerland  after  the  musical  festival,  and  of  then  visiting  him  who 
can  never  know  how  truly  and  deeply  I  have  loved  him.  So  without 
a  farewell — for  ever !  His  fatherly  look,  which  since  yesterday  has 
been  constantly  in  my  mind's  eye — dust ! 

It  is  terrible.  As  yet  I  can  scarcely  realise  it.  So  many  hopes 
shattered  for  ever  !  That  of  your  reconciliation,  lost ; — that  of  the  inter- 
course which  I  now  first  thought  to  begin  with  him,  over ; — I  myself  an 
orphan,  deprived  henceforth  of  the  father,  whose  happiness,  would  that 
I  could  say  together  with  yours,  would  have  compensated  me  for  my 
past  and  probably  future  misfortunes  ! 

My  father's  love — I  recognise  its  immeasurable,  unique  value,  just  as 
it  is  lost  to  me  for  ever.  The  sacred  connexion  between  him  and  me 
broken — no  father  for  me  any  more ! 

No  one  in  the  whole  world  who  from  the  depth  of  the  heart  so 
determined  to  be,  and  was,  "my  best  friend;"  that  he  exists  no  more 
for  me,  I,  no  more  for  him,  I  dead  to  him — yes,  that  also  is  a  death ! 

It  is  terrible,  and  so  quickly  too,  so  entirely  without  warning ! 

Could  not  Death  have  waited  a  year  longer,  and  have  given  him  and 
me  the  joy  of  meeting  after  our  long  separation !  And  even  if  this 
happiness  had  ever  after  been  associated  with  the  pain  of  the  last  parting, 
his  last  look  thus  engraved  upon  my  heart  would  have  remained  with  me 
all  the  rest  of  my  life. 

Perhaps,  also,  he  hardly  thought  about  me  with  his  former  interest — 
he  neither  knew  nor  believed  how  truly,  how  heartily  I  loved  him.  All 
complaint  is  useless,  all  hope  vain.  My  decision  cannot  waver ;  I  must, 
if  possible,  once  more  kiss  the  dear  one,  at  any  rate  see  the  place 
where  he  died,  see  his  wife  and  children,  who  received  his  last  smile,  his 
last  word  and  look. 

I  learnt  it  yesterday  afternoon  from  the  Allgemeine  Zeitung.  Liszt 
had  received  your  letter  the  day  before,  and  said  nothing  to  me;  had 
taken  it  to  Baden,  where  he  stayed  two  days ;  and  only  on  his  return 
yesterday  evening  did  your  few  lines  give  me  the  unanswerable  sad  con- 
firmation of  what  I  had  hardly  been  able  to  believe  from  the  printed 
paper,  so  sudden  and  bewildering  was  the  blow. 

I  hope  to  be  at  Otlishausen  tomorrow,  Tuesday,  evening — Liszt 
expects  me  back  here  early  on  Saturday.  I  have  promised  him  to  play 
one  of  his  compositions  on  Wednesday,  October  5th,  and  I  will  do  it ;  I 
shall  have  recovered  myself  by  that  time. 

How  does  Isidore  bear  it  1  May  she  soon  find  peace  and  resignation, 
and  not  give  way  too  much  to  her  natural  grief.  We,  the  survivors, 
have  time  to  lament  the  dead ;  we  cannot  all  at  once  bear  that  which 
breaks  the  heart  bit  by  bit.     Meanwhile  farewell,  dear  mother !     I  shall 


168  HANS   VON   BULOW. 

pray  daily  on  my  knees  that  you  may  be  left  to  us,  you  who  are  our  only 
support  and  protection.  Love  us  for  him,  as  we  would  still  love  you  for 
him. 

Your  deeply-afflicted  son, 

Hans. 


TO  HIS  SISTER. 

Otlishausbn,  Sept.  28,  1853. 

My  dbar,  beloved  Sister, 

I  am  too  violently  shaken,  too  painfully  smitten,  so 
stupified,  I  might  say,  in  mind  and  strength,  that  I  am  unable  to  answer 
your  beautiful  letter  (which  I  just  received  as  I  was  leaving  Carlsruhe) 
as  it  deserves;  to  give  you,  or  rather  to  return  to  you,  anything  like 
what  you  have  given  me.  The  tears  which  flowed  down  my  cheeks  as  I 
read  your  sad  words  had  so  relieved  and  strengthened  me  that  I  was 
able  to  take  the  very  fatiguing  journey  in  my  overwrought  condition, 
without  injury  to  my  health. 

Your  tender  sisterly  love  will  well  imagine  what  my  feelings  here 
must  be ;  how  each  of  the  countless  memories  of  him  whom  I  loved  as 
deeply — though  he  doubted  it — as  I  honoured  him,  and  how  the  picture 
of  our  lost  one,  must  awaken  the  most  poignant  grief  at  his  absence.  .  .  . 
I  should  have  been  so  glad  to  have  you  and  Mamma  here — to  be  all 
together  would  have  been  such  a  blessing  to  our  hearts,  as  you  cannot 
now  have  at  all,  and  I  only  in  part.  Louise,  as  well  as  our  two  little 
brothers, — of  whom  "Willi,  as  often  as  he  saw  me  give  way  to  passionate 
weeping,  ascribed  it  to  Papa's  absence — has  helped  me  very  much,  not 
out  of  the  sorrow,  but  in  the  sorrow  itself.  The  blossoming  life  of  the 
little  ones,  the  sudden,  painless  death  of  our  dear  father,  do  not 
accentuate  that  dark  thought  of  death,  that  horror  which  may  otherwise 
mingle  with  the  cry  of  despair  at  the  visible  removal  of  our  dearest 
from  us.  ...  I  did  quite  right  indeed  to  come  down  here.  ...  I  arrived 
late  yesterday  evening,  and  early  tomorrow  I  travel  back,  without  stopping, 
to  Carlsruhe,  where  it  is  my  duty  to  be,  both  on  account  of  Liszt  and 
myself,  and  of  my  ever  dear  father,  who  lives  henceforth  for  ever  in  my 
heart. 

He  would  really  have  had  much  happiness  in  me;  I  pictured  to 
myself  our  intercourse  after  the  Carlsruhe  festival  as  so  delightful,  so 
soothing  and  enlivening  for  me — for  I  was  quite  determined  to  surprise 
him  then  by  a  pretty  long  visit.  ...  I  should  have  told  him  minutely  of 


CARLSRUHE — OTLISHAUSKN.  169 

all  my  joys  and  sorrows,  small  and  great ;  he  would  probably  have  listened 
to  me  gladly  and  patiently ;  I  should  have  collected  all  the  printed 
signs  and  traces  of  my  first  artist-journey,  which  were  of  but  little  value 
to  me ;  to  please  me  he  would  have  played  the  role  of  Virtuoso-Papa. 

I  have  no  sympathizer  like  him,  for  all  my  future  life — he  alone 
could  be  that,  not  merely  as  my  father,  but  as  a  man  and  as  a  character, 
as  my  truest,  best,  and  (O  had  he  but  known  it)  my  dearest  friend ! 

Just  as  it  has  been  good  for  me  physically  to  make  this  tiring 
journey,  which  at  the  same  time  somewhat  distracted  my  thoughts,  so 
was  it  absolutely  necessary  to  my  heart  to  be  near  him  once  more  in  his 
home  and  family ;  to  see  his  room ; — I  will  not  go  on  giving  way  to  my 
grief. 

I  have  today  arranged  his  books  and  completed  the  catalogue,  ready 
for  Mamma,  if  she  stays  here  with  you  for  a  few  days  on  your  return 
journey,  as  I  most  earnestly  beg  of  you  both  to  do,  with  Louise,  who 
longs  for  you  very  much.  She  quite  expects  you  both,  according  to 
Mamma's  promise. 

If  you  believe  of  him  that  he  now  no  longer  sees  through  the  dim 
lenses  of  biassed  mortal  judgment,  but  with  a  pure,  penetrating,  direct 
look  into  our  hearts,  you  will  feel  constrained  to  come  here,  will  go  to 
the  altar  of  his  room,  and  will  bring  to  him  and  his  wife  the  oflPering  of 
full  and  unreserved  reconciliation. 

In  his  Novalis,  which,  like  his  whole  secretaire  with  everything  on 
and  about  it,  remains  just  as  he  left  it,  a  letter  copied  by  Mamma  is  still 
lying.  He  read  Novalis  much  in  the  last  part  of  his  life,  and  often 
made  notes  on  it :  there  is  no  doubt  he  had  Mamma's  letter  in  his  hand, 
and,  though  the  feelings  of  his  heart  were  perhaps  painfully  mistaken, 
there  can  be  no  doubt  they  were  noble  and  pure.  .  .  .  Then,  as  I  have 
not  been  able  to  be  with  you  here,  do  come  quickly  afterwards  to  me. 
"Willi  and  I  have  become  great  friends.  I  hope  he  at  any  rate  will  be 
attached  to  me — he  looks  so  like  Papa. 

If  such  a  thing  as  personal  consolation  can  be  mentioned  here,  I 
have  it  from  these  brothers  whom  I  shall  always  love,  and  you  will  too, 
don't  you  think  so  ?  I  have  not  yet  been  in  the  little  chapel — we  are 
going  this  evening.  Louise  and  I  are  agreed  about  two  things  which 
must  be  done  whilst  I  have  power  to  assert  my  own  will :  first,  we  must 
put  a  wire  fence  round  the  chapel  and  its  ground,  and  secondly,  we  must 
insure  the  possession  of  the  chapel  by  the  eventual  purchase  of  the 
castle,  a  very  advisable  thing  for  Louise  to  do. 

I  think  we  ought  also  to  get  a  lithograph  done  from  the  daguerreo- 
type. I  will  take  steps  about  it,  as  also  for  a  proper  announcement  of 
his  death.     I  shall  write  about  this  the  day  after  tomorrow  to  Gutzkow. 


170  HANS  VON   BtJLOW. 

I  hope  to  keep  well.  I  play  in  Carlsruhe  on  the  5th  of  October. 
Liszt  made  me  promise  this  before  he  let  me  go. 

Perhaps  I  shall  play  elsewhere  soon  after,  so  as  to  earn  a  little 
money. 

God  alone  knows  where  I  shall  decide  to  make  my  home.  All  these 
cares  oppress  me,  and  embitter  even  the  quiet  time  of  mourning,  to  Avhich 
I  ought  now  to  give  myself  up  for  my  own  good,  since  I  can  now  never 
look  forward  to  the  quiet  happiness  of  living  with  my  father  as  I  hoped 
to  do. 

Could  I  but  know  and  see  how  you  both  are,  weep  with  you,  and,  in 
that  mourning  which  we  owe  to  the  deceased,  seek  to  find  a  serener 
courage. 

You  can  give  me  no  greater  pleasure  than  by  letting  me  see  you  soon 
in  full  fresh  health. 

Do  not  think  it  a  want  of  tenderness  if  I  write  to  you  seldom.  The 
anxieties  for  myself — and  they  are  now  pressingly  severe — leave  me  no 
time  to  pour  out  my  heart  to  you.  I  must  first  be  or  become  something 
myself ;  then  I  can  be  something  to  both  of  you. 

I  shall  still  probably  write  to  Mamma  this  evening,  and  post  the  letter 
early  tomorrow  in  Komanshorn,  or  perhaps  not  till  Carlsruhe,  for  I 
really  have  not  much  superfluous  strength, 

Joachim,  whom  I  saw  again  after  a  long  interval,  Liszt  and  Pruckner, 
who  were  with  me  at  the  first  shock,  have  behaved  most  beautifully 
to  me. 

There  are  such  countless,  boundless  recollections  that  could  make 
my  heart  bleed  afresh,  that  I  must  pilot  the  dark  ship  of  this  more 
silent  and  sacred  sorrow,  with  the  foresight  and  careful  thought  which 
befits  it,  through  these  dangerous  rocks. 

Farewell,  dear  sister :  once  more  my  heartfelt  thanks  for  your 
beautiful  letter.     Think  lovingly  of 

Your  deeply-stricken  brother, 

Hans. 


TO  JOACHIM  RAFF. 

EoMANSHORN,  2Wi  September  1853. 
My  Dear  Friend, 

I  have  just  left  the  house  of  my  late  father,  the  place  of 
his  death,  whither  I  had  been  summoned  from  Carlsruhe  by  an  alarming 
message  as  deeply  painful  as  it  was  unexpected,  and  of  which  I  had 
no  apprehension, 


CABLSRUHE — OTLISHAUSEN.  171 

It  was  a  hard,  a  bitter  stroke  of  fate,  and  I  have  as^  yet  scarcely 
succeeded  in  gaining  that  necessary  composure  and  resignation  which 
enable  one  to  bear  deep  grief.  After  a  long  separation  I  had  most 
ardently  hoped  to  spend  a  few  weeks  in  his  company,  as  soon  as  the 
musical  festival  came  to  an  end ;  to  dedicate  myself  entirely  to  him,  and 
to  enjoy  together  the  benefit  of  renewed  intimate  and  intellectual  inter- 
course, for  myself  especially  necessary.  We  had  so  much  in  common, 
and  had,  partly  by  my  fault,  and  to  some  extent  again  without  any  fault 
of  mine,  become  so  much  estranged.  Eelentless  iron  necessity  has  pre- 
vented my  seeing  him  again,  and  he  had  to  depart  without  farewell, 
without  having  given  me  his  blessing.  He  died  quite  suddenly  and 
without  pain  at  8  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  September  16th.  A  single 
sigh  betokened  his  instantaneous  end,  which  no  one  had  expected  or 
thought  of.  A  malady  of  which  he  had  taken  little  notice  caused  the 
sudden  stoppage  of  the  heart,  and  brought  death  without  any  deforming 
demolition,  beautiful  as  a  Grecian  death. 

I  was  so  unfortunate  as  not  to  hear  till  a  week  had  elapsed  that  I 
was  an  orphan  and  fatherless. 

It  seems  however  a  profanation  to  speak  much  of  a  grief  full  of  such 
sacred  recollections. 

Compassionate  me,  my  dear  friend. 

I  send  you  this  sad  news  from  Romanshorn,  where  I  am  waiting  for 
the  steamboat  to  take  me  back  to  Carlsruhe,  and,  as  I  much  hope,  to 
energetic ;  activity  :  I  am  sending  it  from  this  place  especially  because  I 
think  of  you  again  most  warmly  here.  I  have  so  much  the  feeling  that 
we  are  both  connected  with  this  country  and  therefore  countrymen. 
Your  birthplace  is  not  far  from  the  grave  of  my  father. 

And  therefore  I  now  also  beg  you  to  let  a  friendly  fellowship  again 
exist  between  us,  that  former  heartiness  which  it  has  pained  me  to^feel 
gone.  Not  merely  our  artistic,  but  our  social,  interests  and  connections 
have  something  in  common.  Forgive  me  where  I  may  perhaps  from 
thoughtlessness,  never  from  bad  intention,  have  erred  towards  you.  Be 
my  friend  again  as  formerly  :  I  am  assuredly  very  grateful  to  you  when 
thinking  of  those  earlier  times. 

As  soon  as  I  am  once  more  master  of  my  thoughts,  and  in  condition 
to  send  a  few  words  worthy  of  your  '  Frtihlingsboten,'  I  will  dc  so  in 
accordance  with  the  wish  you  expressed  to  Liszt. 

Farewell  —  may  fortune  soon  take  the  most  gratifying  and  well- 
deserved  turn  for  you  !  My  hearty  greetings  to  Klindworth.  And  many 
thanks  to  you  for  the  Psalm,  which  has  shortened  my  journey  and 
cheered  me  much. 


172  HANS  VON   BULOW. 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Carlsruhe,  l2tJi  October  1853. 

My  dbar,  beloved  Mother, 

Since  Monday  I  have  been  expecting  you  here  in 
Carlsruhe,  where  I  have  received  two  letters  addressed  to  you,  which  I 
now  forward,  and  one  today  at  last  giving  an  explanation  of  your  non- 
arrival,  which  made  me  anxious. 

On  Thursday  we  six  young  people  (Joachim,  Cornelius,  Pruckner,  etc.) 
travelled  with  Liszt,  the  Princess  Wittgenstein,  Princess  Marie  and  her 
cousin  Eugen  "W[ittgenstein]  to  Basle,  where  Liszt  had  promised  to  meet 
Wagner.  You  had  written  to  me  that  you  would  come  to  Carlsruhe  by 
Basle  and  get  there  on  Saturday.  This  was  sufficient  reason  for  me  to 
come  and  meet  you  both,  and  you  had  also  commissioned  me  to  address 
your  letters  thither,  Poste-Restante.  "We  had  two  delightful  days  there. 
Liszt  drank  to  our  brotherhood  in  Kirschwasser.* — Saturday  mid-day 
we  went  to  Strassburg,  i.e.  the  Wittgensteins,  Liszt,  Wagner,  Joachim 
and  I.  The  cathedral  made  such  an  elevating  and  uniquely  imposing 
impression  on  me  that  it  even  now  makes  me  happy.  From  Strassburg 
Joachim  and  I  returned  first  to  Baden-Baden,  and  the  others  went  for 
ten  days  to  Paris.  On  Monday  I  came  back  here,  and  am  stopping  quite 
alone  and  very  melancholy  at  the  inn,  going  off  to  the  station  to  meet  all 
the  arrivals ;  for,  as  letters  to  you  arrived  here,  I  must  conclude  there 
has  been  some  slight  delay,  and  that  I  might  expect  you  any  hour. 

To  begin  at  the  end.  As  regards  the  plan  of  my  journey  (of  which 
more  hereafter)  I  make  no  circuitous  route,  nor  incur  loss  of  time  (which 
means  money)  in  going  by  way  of  Stuttgart,  and  shall  therefore  go  there 
tomorrow.  Perhaps  I  may  be  able  to  induce  Gall  to  let  me  play  in  the 
theatre  there,  and  so  earn  a  small  fee. 

It  is  possible  that  I  may  also  be  able  to  play  at  the  Court  here ;  but 
I  don't  think  so  :  Count  Leiningen,  Steward  of  the  Household,  on  whom 
I  called  early  this  morning,  and  who  seems  to  take  an  interest  in  me,  has 
promised  to  call  upon  me  again  this  afternoon.  I  played  in  the  Court- 
concert  on  Wednesday  evening,  as  well  as  on  the  morning  of  the  second 
festival-concert,  with  the  greatest  success ;  hence  I  think  I  shall  hardly 
have  "  to  relight  the  stump  of  this  cigar  "  (a  saying  of  Berlioz). 

In  Stuttgart  I  shall  be  much  nearer  to  you,  with  regard  to  the  answer 
for  which  I  must  beg  immediately  on  receipt  of  this  letter,  and  can  then 
indeed  even  see  you  both  on  your  journey,  if  it  is  not  put  off  too  late. 
Therefore  please  address — '  Kbuig  von  Wiirtemberg,'  Stuttgart. 

*  A  li(jueur. 


CARLSRUHE — OTLISHAUSEN.  173 

Liszt's  plan  for  me  is  that  I  shall  go  to  Paris  at  the  beginning  of  next 
year ;  he  will  be  back  in  Weimar  on  October  22.  He  thinks  that  the 
worst  is  now  over  for  me,  and  he  can  very  easily  prepare  the  way  to  a 
position  for  me  in  Paris.  But,  as  I  said,  all  this  has  still  to  be  talked 
over. 

Liszt's  and  my  next  plan  for  me  is  Dresden.  I  have  promised  to 
play  there  at  the  beginning  of  November,  in  a  concert  which  a  member  of 
the  Court  band  is  going  to  give  with  the  whole  orchestra,  a  promise 
which  I  shall  certainly  keep.  Wagner  has  also  given  me  a  commission 
for  arrangements  of  Lohengrin  and  Tannhauser,  and,  by  this  work,  which 
must  not  be  delayed,  I  am  certain  to  earn  something.  W[agner's]  and 
Meser's  disciples  have  now  taken  up  Tannhauser,  and  1  can  make  the 
conditions,  as  it  is  now  becoming  a  very  lucrative  affair.  For  this  work 
I  must  have  quiet  and  a  neutral  ground.  I  shall  have  to  make  my  debut 
in  Leipzig  at  the  subscription-concert  in  November.  Dresden  suits  me 
very  well,  I  was  decidedly  successful  there ;  I  am  indeed  almost  astonished 
to  read  so  much  that  is  now  written  about  me,  and  to  see  terms  such  as 
"  genial "  used  in  connection  with  me,  in  newspapers  like  the  Illttstrirte 
Zeitung. 

Now  what  will  you  do  ?  Whatever  I  undertake  will  depend  upon 
that.  I  need  money.  Therefore  be  so  good  as  to  forgive  me  if  I  am 
doing  wrong  in  telling  you  of  a  proposition  which  has  been  made  to  me, 
and  to  believe  me  when  I  solemnly  declare  that  I  could  never  think  of 
accepting  it  without  asking  and  obtaining  your  sanction. 

Madame  Ritter — with  whom  and  with  whose  whole  family  Liszt  is  on 
the  most  intimate  footing — invited  me  to  make  her  house  my  home  for  a 
while,  as  she  heard  that  I  was  returning  to  Dresden  to  play  at  a  concert. 
Alexander  R[itter]  is  now  in  Breslau  as  violinist,  Carl  R[itter]  in  Pillnitz, 
just  on  the  point  of  becoming  a  subject  of  Saxony,  and  engaged  to  be 
married,  so  there  really  are,  here  also,  tempi  passati;  I  could  thus  have 
an  excellent  house,  and  grand  piano,  be  undisturbed  at  my  work,  and  in 
case  of  necessity  be  nursed. 

God  forbid  that  I  should  wish  to  influence  your  decision,  or  even 
think  of  calling  in  question  your  antipathy.  But  I  was  obliged  to  tell 
you  about  it,  because  it  would  relieve  you  for  the  present  of  anxiety  on 
my  behalf,  which  causes  me,  believe  me,  as  much  painful  thought  as  it 
does  you.     So  forgive,  and  do  not  be  vexed  with  me  for  this. 

Now  having  told  you  of  my  next  musical  plans  I  beg  for  a  speedy 
reply  to  Stuttgart.  I  am  as  indifferent  to  it  all  as  even  my  dead  father 
can  be.     I  do  not  care  to  speak  of  him  today  in  this  btisiness-letter. 

I  am  in  myself  so  weary  and  dead  that  I  could  not  be  of  assistance  to 
yo\i  in  any  but  mechanical  work. 


174  HANS  VON  BULOW. 

It  rejoices  me  more  than  I  can  say  that  you  are  all  together  in  Otlis- 
hausen,  and  thus  honouring  the  dear  father,  whose  death  is  a  great  and 
very  lasting  shock  to  me. 

Continue  to  love  me,  and  forsake  me  not.  Keep  well,  and  Heaven 
preserve  you !     All  this  of  course  applies  to  Isidore  also. 

Your  loving  son, 

Hans. 

Joachim  can  perhaps  get  me  appointed  Court-pianist  in  Hanover. 
Salary  200  reichsthaler  for  the  half  year ;  but  I  shall  be  able  to  give 
many  lessons  as  well. — Ah,  mon  Dieu  I 


TO  FRANZ  LISZT. 

Dresden,  btli  November  1853. 

My  very  dear  and  illustrious  Master, 

How  much  I  have  to  thank  you  for  the  long  and  beautiful 
letter  with  which  you  have  so  soon  condescended  to  refresh  my  mind  and 
heart !  I  hastened  at  once  to  do  the  commissions  which  you  gave  me, 
so  that  I  might  be  able  to  answer  you  without  delay,  and  thus  to  begin 
to  obliterate  the  very  bad  opinion  which  I  led  you  to  form  of  my 
qualities  as  a  correspondent  last  winter. 

I  feel  in  reality  terribly  unhappy  and  vexed  that  I  have  not  been 
able  to  justify,  rather  better,  your  confidence  in  the  Berlioz  affair. 

Madame  de  Liittichau  is  at  this  moment  so  unwell  that  she  has  been 
obliged  to  keep  her  bed  for  several  days,  and  for  some  time  to  come  she 
will  not  be  fit  to  see  me,  nor  even  my  mother.  As,  moreover,  I  knew 
by  numerous  experiences  that  her  influence  on  Mr.  de  Liittichau  does  not 
go  beyond  the  matrimonial  relations,  I  went  bravely  to  His  Excellency, 
with  the  very  natural  pretext  of  paying  my  respects  to  him.  In  the 
course  of  our  conversation  I  touched  upon  the  chapter  of  Berlioz,  by 
remarking,  as  though  the  observation  came  from  you,  what  an  advantage 
it  would  be  to  profit  by  Berlioz'  momentary  stay  in  Germany,  by  engaging 
him  for  a  concert  in  Dresden,  which  could  not  fail  to  arouse  immense 
and  universal  interest,  in  view  of  the  remarkable  "trimming"  in  the 
opinions  of  the  German  artists  on  Berlioz,  and  his  recent  brilliant 
triumphs  at  Brunswick  and  Hanover.  His  Excellency's  reply  was,  first 
of  all,  evasive,  and  then  entirely  negative  : 

"  A  concert  in  the  theatre  is  now  quite  impossible.  It  could  not  be 
arranged,  because  every  day  now  is  a  subscribers'  day,  and  they  will  have 


CARLSRUHE — OTLISHAUSEN.  175 

theatre  and  not  concert.  One  must  have  regard  to  the  public ;  if  the 
public  does  not  come,  then  the  theatre  cannot  subsist." 

Nevertheless,  there  would  be  no  need  to  despair  if  the  time  were  not 
so  short.  It  would  also  have  been  necessary  to  prepare  for  it  by  means 
of  the  press,  which  I  could  have  had  at  my  disposal  through  my  old 
connection  with  the  University.  However,  I  will  go  once  more  to 
Carus,  who  is  reputed  to  have  a  supreme  influence  and  a  certain 
ascendancy  over  the  Intendant :  I  missed  him  yesterday.  I  will  also  go 
and  see  Krebs,  and  shall  put  before  him  the  enjoyment  of  the  uneasiness 
Keissiger  would  feel  at  the  arrival  of  Berlioz.  Krebs,  moreover,  gave 
the  Overture  to  the  '  Francs-Juges '  last  winter,  at  a  concert  in  the 
theatre.  What  would  be  still  better  would  be  for  Berlioz  to  address 
himself  direct  to  Mr.  de  Liittichau,  which,  as  you  supposed,  he  has  not 
yet  done, 

Pohl  will  dedicate  his  pamphlet  to  the  Count  de  Linanges.  I  have 
advised  him  to  change  the  form,  from  correspondence  into  memoir,  which 
would  be  more  objective  in  fact  and  in  appearance,  and  less  journalistic. 
As  this  alteration  will  not  in  the  least  delay  the  publication,  he  has 
adopted  it.  One  only  doubt  remains  to  him  still — whether  he  ought 
not  first  to  obtain  the  Count's  permission  to  dedicate  it  to  him.  We 
have  been  very  glad,  and  no  doubt  you  were  also,  to  read  at  last  Pohl's 
anticriticism  in  the  Atcgsburger  of  November  2nd.  Such  a  rectifi- 
cation in  this  widely-circulated  paper  was  not  only  desirable,  but 
indispensable. 

If  Spina  is  not  as  negligent  in  replying  to  me  as  I  am  prompt  in 
writing  to  him,  I  hope  to  receive  the  precious  score,  which  I  am 
impatiently  awaiting,  one  of  these  next  days. 

I  took  to  Hahnel  the  two  copies  of  Czerny's  •  Gradus  ad  Parnassum,' 
not  omitting  to  give  him  many  kind  messages  from  you  and  the  Princess. 
He  was  very  much  touched  by  your  attention.  The  parcel  of  music 
containing  your  compositions  he  received  a  long  time  ago.  His  daughter 
is  studying  your  transcription  of  the  Beethoven  Songs.  He  is  going  to 
write  to  you  very  soon,  and  hopes  to  be  able  to  accept  your  invitation  to 
Weimar  in  a  fortnight,  by  which  time  he  expects  to  have  finished  a 
presentable  Karl  August  (according  to  his  own  idea),  a  quality  which  he 
persists  in  refusing  to  recognise  in  his  first  sketch. 

Singer  has  written  to  me  today.  He  has  not  yet  received  the  slightest 
sign  of  life  from  the  Intendant  of  the  Weimar  theatre,  and  really  does 
not  know  what  to  do  about  his  engagement  there,  which  would  make 
him  very  happy. 

Yesterday  evening  I  had  to  listen  to  Chopin's  Second  Concerto, 
materialised  under  the  fingers  of  Fraulein  Marie  Wieck,  who  is  going  to 


176  HANS   VON  BiJLOW. 

play  it  at  the  next  Gewandhaus  concert.  Papa  Wieck,  who  has  been 
pretty  amiable  to  me,  and  whose  vanity  still  enjoys,  in  spite  of  himself, 
the  recollection  of  the  evening  you  were  good  enough  to  spend  with  him 
in  Dresden,  will  shortly  succumb  to  the  jaundice,  which  he  will  not  fail 
to  catch,  on  account  of  the  Trio-  and  Duet-Soirees  which  Monsieur  Jenny 
Lind  is  arranging,  together  with  Schubert  and  Kummer. 

Karl  Mayer  is  rushing  about,  madly  in  love  with  a  young  Russian 
pianist,  Mile,  de  Harder,  a  so-called  pupil  of  Chopin,  who  is  going  to 
play  his  '  Concerto  Symphonique '  for  the  benefit  of  the  poor. 

I  should  be  very  happy  if  I  had  in  my  possession,  as  you  seem  to 
imagine,  the  score  of  your  '  Festgesang,'  for  then  I  could  have  satisfied 
my  longing  to  study  it  thoroughly,  and  to  let  myself  be  influenced,  as 
much  as  possible,  by  the  elevation  and  grandeur  of  the  musical  ideas 
and  sentiments  contained  in  it — qualities  which  must  forcibly  touch  any- 
one who  feels  that  there  vibrates  in  himself  an  artistic  string.  Bitter,  to 
whom  I  have  played  some  bits  which  I  remembered— for  the  whole  of  the 
work  is  in  my  memory  only — was  so  delighted  with  it  that  his  eyes  were 
moist  with  joy.  He  begs  your  permission  to  dedicate  to  this  work  a 
'  Minoritdtsgutachten '  (opinion  of  the  minority)  in  Brendel's  Gazette,  to 
which  he  will  add  an  article  on  your  Mass.  This  permission,  which  I 
ask  in  his  name,  you  can  of  course  only  grant  by  sending  us  the  score. 
Now  I  have  just  learned  from  you  that  you  are  vainly  seeking,  among 
those  who  are  most  deeply  interested  in  it,  the  score  that  we  so  much 
want.  Do  you  think  you  have  lent  it  by  chance  to  Cornelius  ?  None 
of  us,  I  assure  you,  would  have  ventured  to  borrow  it  from  you  "  without 
informing  the  proprietor."  Possibly  it  is  at  Kalliwoda's,  amongst  the 
other  scores  which  have  belonged  to  the  Carlsruhe  Institute  since  the 
Festival. 

One  of  these  days  I  shall  fulfil  the  promise  I  made  you  at  Carlsruhe, 
to  write  a  few  words  on  Raff's  *  Frtihlingsboten.'  I  hope  to  satisfy  the 
composer,  whose  warm  partisan  I  am  as  regards  this  work. 

Mozart-Brahms,  or  Schumann-Brahms,  does  not  in  the  least  trouble 
the  peace  of  my  sleep.  It  is  about  fifteen  years  since  Schumann  was 
speaking  in  absolutely  analogous  terms  of  the  "  genius  "  of  W.  Sterndale 
'  Benet.'*  Moreover  Joachim  knows  Brahms,  as  well  as  the  un-German 
Rem^nyi,t  who  would  render  me  excessively  happy  if  he  would  keep  his 
promise  of  coming  to  see  us  in  Dresden,  as  he  told  my  mother  he  would. 

The  latest  numbers  of  the  Signale  bear  pretty  marked  traces  of  my 
indiscreet  confidences  to  the  editor.     I  had  not  anticipated  that  I  should 

*  "William  Sterndale  Bennett,  the  English  composer  (1816-1876) 
t  Remenyi,  the  violin  virtuoso,  born  in  Hungary  1830. 


CARLSRDHE — OTLISHAUSEN.  177 

read  an  almost  verbal  reproduction  of  the  piquant  notices  I  had  given 
him.     It  is  a  good  lesson  for  the  future. 

Please  excuse,  my  dearest  Master,  the  sans-fa^on  of  this  letter,  which 
I  have  written  in  haste.  I  hope  soon  to  hear  of  you  through  Ritter,  to 
whom  you  were  intending  to  write  shortly.  I  reiterate  my  thanks  for 
your  letter,  and  beg  you  to  continue  your  precious  and  inestimable 
friendship  to  your  respectfully  devoted  and  grateful  pupil. 


M 


NORTH    GERMANY 


CHAPTER  IX. 
NORTH  GERMANY. 

WINTER    1853 — SPRING    1854, 

TO  HIS  MOTHER 

Berlin,  ith  December  1853. 

Beloved  Mother, 

Yesterday  morning  I  felt  in  such  a  rage  that  I  was  over- 
flowing with  gall.  Today  I  am  in  a  more  peaceful  mood,  for  yesterday 
evening  I  had  a  very  warm  reception  and  real  success.  I  have  shown 
people  once  more  what  piano-playing  means.  My  ear  is  still  flattered  by 
the  agreeable  sound  of  a  breathless  suspense  after  my  pianos.  I 
am  contented  with  myself  and  also  with  the  world. 

Although  I  was  intending  to  leave  yesterday,  yet  now  I  have  changed 
my  mind.  Redern,  who  held  forth  pretty  extensively  about  my  Liszt 
style  of  playing,  and  about  the  execution  of  Liszt's  compositions,  against 
both  of  which  he  inveighed,  has  indeed  promised  to  send  me  an  in- 
vitation, in  the  course  of  this  winter,  to  play  at  a  Court  concert  at 
Dresden,  but  I  don't  really  believe  in  it. 

Herewith  a  programme  of  the  concert.  My  choice  was  a  carefully- 
considered  one,  and  justified  itself  in  spite  of  the  wretched  playing  of 
"die  Ganze"  (the  whole),*  who  may  be  compared  with  those  before 
whom  one  casts  pearls.  Singer's  playing  was  wonderfully  beautiful  in 
the  Trio. 
•  ••••••*  •  • 

Bettina  and  Gisel  are  at  Weimar.  I  hear  from  Leipzig  that  Liszt, 
Kaff",  Cornelius,  Laub,  Klindworth  and  Pruckner  were  there  on  Thursday 
for  the  Berlioz  concert.  It  seems  to  have  turned  out  well,  in  spite  of 
many  opponents.     Joachim  sends  best  greetings  to  you.     Moreover  he 

*  A  pun  on  the  name  of  one  of  the  performers,  a  Herr  Ganz, 


182  HANS   VON   B0LOW. 

does  not  write  much.  I  have  been  often  very  sad  here  ;  but,  with  my 
passionate  nature,  my  feelings  are  always  running  from  one  extreme  to 
the  other.  So,  if  Louise  has  written  anything  to  you  about  my  fit 
of  dejection,  you  must  regard  it  only  as  a  passing  thing.  Wagner's 
disciples  will  be  inquiring  after  me  next  in  Dresden,  in  order  to  ask  me 
about  Tannhauser  arrangements,  and  to  hear  my  conditions.  If  there- 
fore anybody  should  make  his  appearance,  please  say  that  I  shall  be  back 
very  soon.  I  have  never  found  the  theatre  and  that  kind  of  thing  so 
uninteresting  as  it  has  been  since  I  have  been  here.  I  go  in  for  very 
little  amusement,  and  am  delighted  to  think  of  soon  being  with  you 
again. 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Bremen,  21st  December  1853. 

Beloved  Mother, 

I  can  find  very  little  time  for  writing,  so  I  must  be  very 
laconic,  and  therefore  take  only  a  half-sheet  for  my  letter,  so  that  I  may 
not  be  tempted  to  run  on  and  on,  as  I  so  often  do.  What  a  lot  of  use- 
less words  already,  as  an  introduction  to  the  so-called  telegram  !  This 
runs  as  follows  :  great  success,  satisfaction  with  myself  and  with  the 
public.  ...  I  played  the  Concerto  extremely  satisfactorily ;  the  accom- 
paniment was  exceptionally  excellent,  and  the  whole  thing  went 
with  spirit  and  fire.  No  misfortune  with  the  piano.  After  my  two 
pieces  in  the  second  part  I  was  repeatedly  called  forward,  and  had 
to  play  an  extra  piece,  one  of  the  'Soirees  de  Vienne.'  At  the 
present  moment  I  have  just  breakfasted,  and  am  playing  with  double 
louis  d'ors. 

The  concert-directors,  very  musical  and  cultivated  people,  merchants 
and  lawyers,  have  been  extremely  kind  to  me  in  every  way,  up  to  now, 
taking  me  all  round  Bremen,  where  there  are  plenty  of  things  worth 
seeing. 

I  feel  so  glad  to  have  played  '  Louis  van's '  *  Concerto  again  once 
more,  and  to  have  played  it  well — for  now  I  shall  play  it  much  better 
the  next  time. 

Liszt  writes  most  kindly  and  affectionately  in  both  his  letters  to  me. 
I  submit  to  his  advice  and  wishes,  in  spite  of  the  opposition  of  my  pride 
— that  is  to  say,  I  am  writing  to  David  this  very  day  with  regard  to 
playing  in  Leipzig.     As  it  must  be  so,  I  submit. 

*  His  familiar  name  for  Beethoven, 


NORTH  GERMANY.  1S3 


TO  FRANZ  LISZT. 

Hanoveb,  2Srd  Deeembe)'  1853. 
My  very  Dear  and  Illustrious  Master, 

Perhaps  you  would  be  kind  enough  to  read  through  my 
letter  to  David  and  see  if  you  think  it  will  do  ?  I  hope  that  the  score 
and  my  arrangement  of  David's  Overture  will  reach  you  at  the  same 
time ;  for  you  have  already  been  so  very  good  as  to  undertake  to 
present  my  respects  to  him.  As  it  is  you  who  advised  me  to  write  to 
him,  I  did  not  for  a  moment  fear  to  be  wanting  in  dignity  by  following 
your  valued  advice ;  nevertheless  it  was  not  easy  to  me  to  write  those 
few  lines. 

I  am  very  much  obliged  to  you  for  the  score  of  the  'Caprice 
Turc';  but  I  have  not  yet  received  the  orchestral  parts.  "Would 
you  kindly  tell  me  which  Trio  of  Schumann  it  would  be  best  for 
me  to  play  at  Leipzig  1  I  have  had  Schubert's  Fantasia  sent  to  me  at 
Hanover,  so  that  I  may  study  it  at  my  ease  during  my  stay  here,  which 
I  shall  prolong  for  about  a  fortnight  more,  as  Joachim  has  engaged  me 
for  the  concert  on  the  7th  January.  If  Killer's  victim  [Joachim]  does 
not  arrive  tomorrow  I  shall  spend  rather  a  dismal  Christmas  Day.  On 
my  way  to  Bremen  I  stopped  at  Brunswick,  where  I  saw  LitolfF.  We 
played  the  piece  from  '  Cellini '  together  d  quatre  mains ;  he  presented 
me  with  his  third  Trio  (C  minor)  which  has  just  come  out,  and  in  which 
there  is  a  good  deal  of  lost  labour  and  much  of  the  "  music  of  the  past 
and  of  the  old  romantic  school."  It  seems  that  your  compositions  will 
not  be  published  so  soon.  You  can  well  guess  that  I  did  not  fail  to  go 
and  see  Mesdemoiselles  Spohr,  whom  I  found  most  amiable,  and  with 
whom  I  fell  in  love  afresh  in  equal  shares.  The  family  is  going  to  Paris 
at  the  beginning  of  the  New  Year,  because  Mile.  Rosalie  requires  a  new 
instrument,  and  thence  to  Brussels.  If  I  find  Hanover  too  tedious,  I 
shall  perhaps  go  before  New  Year  and  spend  a  few  days  at  Brunswick  in 
adoration  of  Mesdemoiselles  Spohr. 

I  feel  very  jealous  of  the  dignity  of  Rem^nyi.  Would  it  not  be 
possible  to  tack  the  name  of  any  decent  beast  onto  my  name  1  Or  could 
not  you  manage  to  grant  me  letters  patent  of  '*  knight  of  the  order  of 
St.  Rappo,"  which  would  first  have  to  be  created  ?  I  would  assuredly 
endeavour  to  render  myself  worthy  of  such  an  honour. 

Please  excuse  the  haste  and  disorder  of  theso  lines  ! 


184  HANS  VON   BULOW. 

TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Hanover,  2ith  December  1853. 

Beloved  Mother, 

I  reached  here  a  couple  of  hours  ago,  and,  as  the  post 
is  quite  near  my  hotel  ('Rheinischer  Hof,'  where  however  I  shan't  stay, 
as  it  is  mesquin),  I  have  fetched  your  letter,  and  hegin  to  answer  you, 
immediately  after  having  written  fully  to  Liszt  to  Leipzig,  and  enclosed 
a  note  for  David  in  spite  of  inward  reluctance.  There  are  a  good  many 
things  that  might  be  said  on  this  point;  but  on  the  whole  it  is 
sufficient  to  think  them. 

I  enjoyed  myself  very  much  in  Bremen,  and  almost  repent  of  having 
left  it  today,  as  I  am  suffering  from  headache ;  Joachim  has  not  yet 
returned  from  Cologne — I  hope  he  is  coming  this  evening — and  I  shall 
have  a  melancholy  Christmas  Eve.  Consequently  I  shall  be  just  as 
sorry  as  you  that  I  cannot  be  with  you. 

From  the  post  I  went  to  a  clothier's  and  bought  myself  a  decent 
black  waistcoat,  very  dear,  but  practical  and  elegant  (3  thalers,  16 
groschen).  This  I  then  made  my  Christmas  box  to  myself,  that  is,  I 
admired  it  when  I  got  home.  That  reminds  me  that  I  owe  most 
grateful  thanks  for  the  silk  handkerchiefs  I  found  in  my  box.  May 
you  be  happier  and  feeling  better  than  I  .  .  .  this  evening !  I  shall 
certainly  go  to  bed  early — yet  No,  for  at  10  o'clock  I  must  go  to  the 
station,  which  however  is  just  opposite,  to  see  after  Joachim,  "Warsaw 
tempts  me  but  little  at  this  moment  .  .  .  and  yet  why  not,  if  nothing 
better  turns  up  ?     I  have  not  yet  written  to  Liszt  about  that. 

So  do  not  yet  refuse  it.  One  can  certainly  wait  a  little  before 
deciding.  And  yet,  on  one  hand,  it  is  really  an  execrably  Polish  or 
Russian  concern. 

25th  December. 

From  8  o'clock  till  10  I  slept.  I  woke  up  just  in  time  to  go  to  the 
station.  "When  it  was  pretty  nearly  11  o'clock  came  Joachim  at  last,  the 
train  being  very  late.  Our  meeting  was  then  a  very  happy  and  enjoy- 
able one.  Today  we  have  been  playing  most  of  the  day,  and  called  on 
Count  Platen,  who  at  first  was  rather  formal,  but  afterwards  became 
very  friendly.  Liittichau  has  had  me  introduced  to  him  verbally  already 
through  Kapellmeister  Fischer  *  of  Hanover,  who  was  lately  in  Dresden, 
and  was  commissioned  to  look  me  up.     Hanover  is  rather  slow.     A 

*  Karl  Ludwig  Fischer,  1816-77, 


NORTH  GERMANY.  185 

dead-alive  sort  of  place ;  in  the  road  one  sees  nobody.  We  are  having 
it  cold  and  no  mistake,  6-8  degrees,  but  a  healthy  air.  Today  there  is 
no  theatre,  tomorrow  is  the  '  Jungfrau  von  Orleans,'  and  the  day  after 
tomorrow  the  '  Freischutz.' 

So  on  the  7  th  January  I  shall  play  at  the  concert  here ;  probably 
shortly  before  that  I  shall  play  at  the  Court,  but  just  not  in  the  old 
year.  Then  on  Tuesday  or  "Wednesday  I  am  going  to  Brunswick  for  a 
couple  of  days,  to  see  the  Spohrs.  When  I  return  I  shall  stop  with 
Joachim.  .  .  .  Why  have  you  not  heard  the  Lind?  Songs  she  does 
sing  well.  The  Bayer-Biirk  warmly  defended  my  Sontag  article  lately 
in  company ! 

What  is  Isidore's  publisher  about  ?     Is  there  no  answer  yet  ? 

28th  December. 

Yesterday  I  went  to  see  Hen  von  Grote,  to  whom  Ernst  introduced 
me.  It  is  quite  possible  that  he  will  give  himself  some  trouble  on  my 
behalf.  He  is  a  colonel,  whereas  Platen  is  only  a  captain.  We  shall 
see.  I  don't  give  way  to  sanguine  hopes  in  this  respect,  as  you  know.  I 
have  received  what  you  sent  me.  I  know  not  where  any  more  letters 
should  come  from  now,  when  I  won't  answer  any  in  the  old  year. 

One  thing  which  attracts  me  very  much  to  Hanover  is  the  splendid 
grand  pianos  of  Kittmiiller  from  Gbttingen — Erard's  mechanism.  Liszt 
himself  had  spoken  much  of  them  to  me  formerly.  They  are  delight- 
ful to  play  on.  I  practise  four  hours  a  day  on  one,  as  I  am  so 
enchanted  with  their  rich  tone.  Joachim  finds  it  very  slow  here  .  .  . 
he  does  not  know  a  soul,  and  longs  to  be  off.  It  is  indescribably  dead- 
alive  here.     He  has  plenty  of  time  for  himself ;  that  is  one  good  thing. 

The  Berlin  letter  was  from  Truhn  ;  a  very  kind  one.  I  would 
rather  be  in  Berlin  now,  or  else  in  Dresden.  Ditto  Joachim,  of  course. 
But  we  ennuyer  ourselves  in  duet  here  ! 

Yesterday  we  were  at  Marschner's ;  such  a  comic,  fat  face,  that  I  had 
some  difficulty  to  keep  from  laughing.  Uncommonly  amiable  to  me, 
Joachim  thinks.  Towards  Berlioz  he  has  become  quite  'itistre' 
[boorish]. 

29th  December. 
Today  I  read  in  the  hotel  the  Hamburger  Correspondent,  the  chief 
political  paper  of  the  north,  122  years  old;  and  in  it  there  was  a  most 
famous  critique  of  my  Berlin  success — to  employ  a  used-up  word — 
very  long,  very  striking  for  all  the  many  readers  of  this  paper  in 
Hanover,  Bremen  and  all  this  neighbourhood.     It  pleased  me  especially 


186  HANS   VON   BULOW. 

that  Volkmann  was  so  highly  praised,  as  also  my  services  in  having 
played  the  Trio ;  moreover  I  feel  more  and,  more  that  I  was  instinctively 
right  in  hitting  on  this  choice,  from  which  all  "  well-meaning,  practical " 
people  had  dissuaded,  me.  And,  in  regard  to  Volkmann,  who  lately 
thanked  me  in  the  most  touching  manner,  I  now  stand  not  censured  by 
Eellstab's  trash — and  that  is  the  best  of  all. 

Joachim  will  introduce  me,  in  a  few  days'  time,  to  the  Court 
lady,  Countess  Bernstorff,  who,  according  to  his  opinion,  is  the  most 
musical,  most  amiable,  and  most  spirituelle  of  all  the  Court  plants, 
which  I  do  not  doubt.  But  .  .  .  can  Joachim  do  this  ?  I  mean,  is  it 
the  correct  thing  for  him  to  take  me  like  that  to  an  unmarried  lady  ? 
I  should  be  glad  if  you  would  tell  me  this  quickly. 

At  New  Year  I  have  some  letters  to  write ;  to  Liszt ;  and  to  Eaff,  to 
whom  I  owe  an  answer  to  three  letters.  Early  this  morning  I  have 
been  playing  with  Joachim  to  a  few  old  ladies.  He  thinks  I  am  very 
much  improved. 

Now  I  want  to  send  ofiF  my  letter  quickly,  so  that  you  may  hear  from 
me  on  New  Year's  Day,  and  not  begin  1854  first  thing  with  any  kind  of 
anxiety  about  me,  who  have  given  you  so  much  occasion  for  sorrow,  and 
also,  at  the  same  time,  for  proving  your  unbounded  motherly  love ! 
Believe  me  that  I  discern  it,  not  with  a  mere  look  of  intelligent  gratitude, 
but  with  a  heart  full  to  overflowing,  a  thing  which  seldom  happens,  and 
then  in  secret ;  and  that  the  happiest  day  of  my  life  will  be  when  you  feel 
you  can  own  to  yourself  that  you  have  not  wasted  your  love  on  an  un- 
worthy object.  What  I  used  to  write  in  my  lessons  at  school  as  a  child — 
New  Year's  wishes  to  parents  (0  my  God) — this  I  feel  today  more  strongly 
than  ever  in  my  inmost  heart.  No  need  for  me  to  tell  you  what  I 
wish  for  you  ;  I  know  that  the  greater  part  of  your  wishes  for  yourself 
concern  me ;  may  it  be  granted  me  soon  to  fulfil  them  to  some  degree. 
The  great  seriousness  of  life  has  opened  before  me  in  the  terrible  year 
that  is  leaving  us.  Grief  for  him  has  entered  my  very  soul ;  the  feeling 
of  Mi  death,  and,  together  with  that,  the  feeling  of  death  in  general,  will 
be  ever  present  with  me.  I  have  matured,  in  carrying  this  feeling  about 
with  me ;  and  if  I  do  not  let  it  appear,  as  others  do,  it  is  because  it  would 
overcome  me  too  overpoweringly.  But  I  dedicate  to  his  memory  my  test 
moments. 

May  you,  beloved  mother,  my  nearest  and  dearest  comforter,  begin 
the  New  Year  well  and  happily,  trusting  in  the  future  for  me  and  for 
thee! 

I  kiss  your  hand  reverently,  and  am 

Your  loving  son  Hans, 

whose  heart  belongs  to  you. 


NORTH   GERMANY.  187 

Thus  closed  for  Biilow  this  year  of  1853,  so  rich  in  events  that  moulded 
Ilia  character.  It  had  brought  forth  more  of  importance  than  any  year  he 
had  yet  lived  through  :  his  first  artistic  tour  with  the  disillusion  it  brought ; 
his  first  success  in  Berlin  ;  the  death  of  his  father,  of  Ludwig  Tieck  *  and  of 
Theodor  Uhlig.  It  required  all  the  strength  of  his  nature,  all  the  energy  of 
his  will,  gradually  to  shake  himself  free  from  the  paralysing  pressure  of  these 
events,  and  to  set  himself  with  renewed  zeal  to  the  work  of  life. 

Writing  to  his  mother  from  Hanover  on  the  6th  January  1854,  he  says  : 

I  have  got  to  know  Robert  Schumann's  young  prophet  Brahms  pretty 
well ;  he  has  been  here  a  couple  of  days  and  constantly  with  us.  A  very 
loveable,  candid  nature,  and  something  really  of  God's  grace,  in  the  best 
sense,  in  his  talent ! 

From  Dresden  he  writes,  on  the  5th  February  1854,  to  Frau  von  Milde, 
the  celebrated  singer  in  Weimar  : 

Dkar  Madame  and  Artiste, 

If  it  is  not  too  late,  and  you  have  not  quite  lost  your 
interest  in  those  old  songs,  the  value  of  which  consists  in  the  name  you 
permitted  me  to  inscribe  in  the  dedication,  I  could  almost  bless  fate  for 
giving  me  the  opportunity,  thanks  to  the  unpardonable  carelessness  of 
the  publisher,  of  sending  you  my  first  work  myself,  together  with  these 
few  lines,  t 

I  do  not  introduce  my  songs  to  you,  according  to  the  fashion  of  young 
composers,  in  order  to  beg  you  to  give  them  an  unmerited  honour 
by  your  wonderful  talent :  I  had  the  higher  ambition  of  composing 
them  for  your  private  music-room,  and  not  for  drawing-room  audiences. 
But  if  I  should  see  you  again  some  day,  you  would  make  me  endlessly 
happy  in  perfecting  one  or  other  of  them,  whichever  one  you  prefer,  by 
your  singing  of  it  to  me  alone. 

TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Hamburg,  I3th  February  1854. 
Dearest  Mother, 

I  can  only  write,  very  briefly,  the  most  necessary  things 
today.  I  have  played  and  won — that  is  the  chief  thing.  My  playing 
of  the  E  flat  major  Concerto  by  heart  made  a  great  impression.     It  went 

*  The  old  friend  of  Biilow's  father. 

t  '  Six  poems  by  Heine  and  Stemau.'  Set  to  music,  for  soprano  or  tenor  voice, 
with  pianoforte  accompaniment,  and  dedicated  to  Frau  Rosalie  von  Milde,  by  Hans 
von  BUlow,  -Op.  1.     (Leipzig,  C.  F.  Kahnt,  1853.) 


188  HANS   VON   BULOW. 

well.  The  applause  was  not  exactly  very  extensive,  but  was  of  a  kind 
that  made  them  ask  me  to  give  another  concert,  a  soiree  of  Chamber-music, 
or  else  to  play  in  the  theatre.  One  of  these  two  things  I  shall  do.  On 
Wednesday  I  shall  have  an  answer  as  to  the  possibility  (that  is,  the 
guaranteeing)  of  a  Trio-Soiree,  or  something  of  the  kind.  I  have  just 
written  to  Joachim  to  ask  whether  I  could  not  play  at  Court  in  Hanover 
at  the  present  time,  and  of  course  I  am  waiting  for  his  answer.  I  shall 
not  write  to  Brunswick  till  later — that  is  to  say,  when  something  definite 
is  settled  about  what  I  have  just  mentioned ;  in  any  case  I  shall  ask  for 
my  expenses  of  journey  and  stay  there  (reckoned  at  8  louis  d'or). 

I  am  now  so  fearfully  busy  that  I  have  not  time  to  write  at  any  length  : 
it  is  one  constant  ringing  the  changes  between  musical  dejeuners,  dinners 
and  suppers.  When  I  first  came  I  was  very  much  cast  down,  and  the 
journey  was  a  very  fatal  one,  and  much  dearer  than  I  had  imagined,  on 
account  of  the  night-express.  Just  this  moment  a  lady  pianist  has  been 
here,  who  is  going  to  give  a  concert  in  a  fortnight,  and  who  begged  me  to 
give  her  some  explanations  and  advice  about  one  of  Liszt's  Rhapsodies, 
which  she  is  going  to  play ;  directly  after  that  came  a  composer,  who 
brought  me  some  of  his  compositions  for  a  present, — and  that  is  how  one 
is  set  on. 

I  will  continue  after  this  interruption. 

My  stay  in  Berlin  was  too  transient  for  me  to  be  able  to  call  on  the 
Arnims,  so  I  left  Isidore's  letter  in  great  haste  at  Louise's.  She  was  not 
at  home,  but  I  kissed  the  sleeping  children  on  the  forehead.  At  first  I 
had  great  difficulty  in  getting  a  good  instrument  here — one  that  suited 
me  in  the  touch.  At  last  I  was  so  fortunate  as  to  meet,  quite  unex- 
pectedly, with  friend  Speidel  from  Munich,  who  helped  me.  He  had 
been  here  some  days,  and  would  have  liked  to  make  his  appearance  here, 
which  I  now  unintentionally  prevented. 

The  manner  of  our  meeting  was  really  most  original.  We  met  at  the 
door  of  the  hotel,  in  which  we  were  both  living,  on  the  way  to  the  same 
lady,  to  whom  we  both  had  letters  of  introduction.  A  splendid  scene  for 
a  comic  opera ! 

It  was  most  welcome  and  pleasant  to  me  to  have  found  a  companion 
and  colleague  with  whom  I  get  on  so  well,  and  who  is  prolonging  his 
fruitless  stay  here  on  my  account. 

Life  here  is  exceedingly  jolly,  and  not  so  enormously  dear  as  it  was 
said  to  be.     Nothing  to  compare  with  Vienna. 

And  what  a  glorious  city  !  Really  magnificent  —  where  I  live  it 
looks  quite  Venetian  !  And  this  delightful  climate  with  the  balmy  sea- 
air — so  that  one  is  not  freezing,  in  spite  of  the  excessively  piercing  cold, 
which  has  come  back  again. 


NORTH   GERMANY.  189 

As  soon  as  I  have  finished  this  letter  I  must  go  to  Altona,  to  call  on 
some  of  the  musical  authorities — Marxen,*  Boie  and  others ;  on  the  side 
of  the  musicians  I  have  been  met  with  great  esteem — low  be  it  spoken — 
and  am  treated  as  a  "  quelqu^  un"  not  as  a  "  quelque  chose,"  which  is  good. 
But  unberufen,  unberufen,  unberufen  !  [Low  be  it  spoken.]  Otherwise 
the  next  thing  will  be,  I  shall  have  to  eat  my  words,  as  it  has  always 
happened  before. 

As  I  said,  I  cannot  at  once  give  you  a  definite  answer,  but  must  wait 
for  what  I  mentioned  at  the  beginning  of  my  letter.  You  will  see  from 
this  that  I  am  trying  to  be  not  unpractical,  but  tolerably  expeditious, 
and  also  cautious  in  a  negative  sense,  by  not  immediately  rejecting  any- 
thing that  might  offer. 

W.'s  letter  got  me  a  free  ticket  for  the  (reserved)  pit.  It  won't  do 
anything  more  for  me,  so  set  your  mind  at  rest  about  that. 

I  have  made  the  acquaintance  of  Kapellmeister  Ignatz  Lachner, 
through  Speidel,  and  we  frequently  see  each  other. 

If  you  did  but  know  how  driven  I  am  today;  to  bed  at  half -past 
twelve,  up  at  seven,  and  innumerable,  unavoidable  calls  already  by 
eleven  o'clock. 

I  would  send  you  back  the  money  for  my  journey  today  with  best 
thanks,  if  I  could  get  it  changed  into  notes ;  but  the  waiter  has  not  got 
them  by  him,  and  time  fails. 

Farewell,  and  be  ever  especially  good  to  me. 

TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Hamburg,  2ith  February  1854. 
Motto  :  Unberufen,  unberufen,  unberufen  ! 
Dearest  Mother, 

I  must  say  my  head  is  very  bad,  and  I  have  some  trouble  in 
recovering  myself  sufficiently  to  be  able  to  give  my  concert  this  evening  at 
the  theatre,  and  after  that  to  rejoice  a  big  musical  salon  with  my  presence 
and  my  playing.  But  I  have  still  a  free  moment,  which  allows  me  to 
write  a  line  to  you.  Yesterday  I  gave  my  musical  matinee — see  pro- 
gramme. It  was  brilliant !  All  that  Hamburg  contains  of  the  most 
elegant  and  distinguished  met  there.  My  clear  profits  amounted  to 
about  20  louis  d'or.  I  send  you  five  herewith,  as  a  reimbursement  of  a 
small  portion  of  all  the  money  I  have  cost  you  for  my  pianistic  travelling 
expenses  lately,  and  am  paying,  with  another  five,  various  debts.  On  the 
1st  March  I  must  support  Glasbrenner's  concert  as  I  have  promised ;  on 

*  Eduard  Marxen  (1806-1887),  the  teacher  of  Johannes  Brahms. 


190  HANS   VON   BULOW. 

the  6th  is  my  soiree  at  Altona  ;  on  the  11th  I  have  to  play  in  Brunswick, 
where  Joachim  has  promised  me  his  collaboration.  It  would  be  mad  to 
come  back  to  Dresden  just  now ;  I  shall  still  have  to  be  away  a  good  fort- 
night longer.  These  are  my  present  plans ;  it  is  possible  that  there  may 
be  alterations,  but,  in  that  case,  you  shall  hear  from  me  at  once.  I  did 
not  write  sooner,  because  I  wanted  to  be  able  to  tell  you  the  results  of 
my  concert,  and  to  give  you  good  tidings. 

What  a  constant  alternation  it  has  been  for  me  of  soirees,  suppers, 
dinners  and  dejeuners ;  how  I  have  been  feted  and  made  much  of  in  the 
salons — it  is  impossible  to  write  all  this,  or  to  reckon  up  all  my  acquaint- 
ances. I  am  the  darling  of  all  the  well-to-do,  and  also  of  the  aristocratic 
and  best  society ;  they  fight  about  me ;  the  musicians — the  artistic  ones — 
like  me  very  much,  and  will  not  hear  of  my  going  until  I  have  promised 
to  come  back  in  the  autumn  and  arrange  some  soirees.  With  all  this 
there  is  so  little  social  constraint ;  in  short,  up  to  the  present  time  it  has 
been  perfectly  delightful  here,  more  so  than  ever  before,  or  anywhere 
else.  Count  Redern  has  sent  me  a  letter  to  his  brother-in-law — other- 
wise nothing  has  been  said  with  regard  to  the  Court  concert — which  I 
have  not  yet  been  able  to  deliver. 

I  am  playing  a  great  deal — because  I  must ;  I  must  have  my  whole 
repertoire  in  my  head,  and  be  always  ready  to  play  any  favourite  Trio 
of  Beethoven,  Mendelssohn,  etc.,  at  sight. 

If  only  things  will  last  for  a  while,  and  go  on  as  well  as  they  are 
doing  now ! 

How  are  you  1  And  how  is  Isidore  ?  Write  soon :  I  myself  really 
have  not  time. 


Meanwhile  farewell. 

Your  loving  son 


Hans  v.  B. 


Best  love  to  Isa  of  course.     What  has  Max  Duncker  replied  ? 

The  Press  praises  me  with  fabulous  respect.  I  am  quoted  as  an 
authority ;  "  Master,"  "  full  of  talent,"  —  these  are  now  quite  trite 
expressions. 

TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Hamburg,  Ith  March  1854. 
Dbarbst  Mother, 

I  am  so  glad  you  have  written  to  me,   that  is,   that  I 
have  got  a  letter  from  you  this  morning,  for  I  was  intending  to  write  to 


NORTH   GERMANY.  191 

you  as  soon  as  I  was  up,  even  if  it  were  a  disjointed  letter,  ■which  is  all  I 
can  manage  nowadays.  I  am  dreading  Dresden  after  your  description. 
Yet  I  must  not  stay  here  very  much  longer  now,  where  I  have  been  so 
happy.  For  many  reasons  I  must  leave.  In  the  first  place  Lacombe  (a 
really  firstrate  pianist  and  musician  and  a  delightful  man)  is  giving 
concerts  here,  and,  before  he  has  finished,  will  follow  the  Clauss,*  who 
has  been  engaged  by  an  entrepreneur  here  to  give  four  concerts  in  eight 
days.  Fraulein  Wilhelmine  was  at  my  concert  at  Altona  yesterday  even- 
ing, of  which  Boie  had  undertaken  the  arrangement  in  his  (beloved  and 
well-known)  name.  It  was  very  pleasant.  The  results  are  destined  to 
buy  me  a  new  pair  of  patent  leather  boots,  a  hat  and  an  overcoat,  and  also 
to  fulfil  Isa's  desire  of  a  novel.  In  spite  of  the  fatiguing  night-journey 
from  Berlin  here,  she  (the  Clauss)  remained  till  the  end,  and  was  very 
complimentary  to  me  at  the  conclusion.  She  is  not  pretty — for  the  rest 
I  am  curious  to  hear  her  play,  and  shall  call  on  her  today.  She  is  a 
great  favourite  here  from  previous  visits.  .  .  .  This  evening  there  is  a 
party  at  Schuberth's,  the  brother  who  represents  here  the  business  of  the 
well-known  music-firm,  the  head  of  which  now  lives  in  New  York.  Fritz 
S[chuberth]  has  been,  up  to  the  present  time,  most  agreeable  to  me,  and  I 
am  the  same  to  him.  Tomorrow  is  Quartet-soiree  in  Altona  (which  is 
only  divided  from  Hamburg  by  a  narrow  trench  which  one  can  jump 
across).  After  an  hour  at  the  opera  I  must  go  on  to  this.  Thursday 
early  is  Lacombe's  matinee,  in  the  evening  is  the  Clauss  concert,  from 
which  I  must  hurry  on  to  a  monster-soiree  to  Hamburg's  monarch, 
Senator  Jenisch.  On  Friday  I  won't  travel ;  consequently  I  shall  leave 
on  Saturday,  going  direct  to  Brunswick,  where  I  give  my  concert  in  the 
theatre  on  Tuesday  the  14th. 

Then  possibly  to  Berlin,  but  more  probably  (as  far  as  I  know  at 
present)  back  to  Dresden.  So  please  address  the  next  letters,  poste 
restante,  Brunswick,  or  to  the  '  Deutsches  Hatis.'    Kiel  I  have  given  up. 

I  read  in  the  papers  that  Livia  had  been  singing  in  public  concerts 
in  Wiesbaden  with  great  success,  especially  in  songs  of  Mendelssohn. 

Would  you  send  me  three  copies  of  Rigoletto  to  Brunswick  ? 

After  the  concert  we  went  yesterday  to  a  Madame  Petersen  in  Altona, 
a  very  cultivated  amateur  and  pleasant  woman. 

Life  here  has  been  very  bearable  :  of  course  there  was  no  lack  of 
small  miseries,  partly  of  my  own  making. 

A  dilemma  does  one  good  occasionally,  and  is  wholesome  at  my  age ; 
and  emptiness  of  mind  is  certainly  not  so  sovereign  in  the  circles  I 
frequent  here,  as  elsewhere. 

*  WiHielmine  Clauss  (1834),  a  pianist,  afterwards  married  to  the  writer  Szarvady. 


192  HANS   VON   BiJLOW. 

The  news  from  Weimar  would  have  affected  me  more,  had  I  not 
become  blase  of  ill  news  by  the  much  sadder  tidings  which  I  heard  a  few 
days  ago,  and  which  have  shaken  me  terribly — the  tragic  end  of 
Schumann.  He  threw  himself  into  the  Rhine  a  week  ago  in  a  fit  of 
mental  derangement  (he  had  latterly  been  constantly  seeing  apparitions) ; 
he  was  rescued  by  some  boatmen,  but  has  since  then  been  placed  in  an 
asylum  at  Bonn,  for  he  is  quite  out  of  his  mind.  Joachim  is  quite  incon- 
solable, and  has  gone  at  once  with  Brahms  to  Diisseldorf  to  see  the  poor 
wife.  I  had  so  rejoiced  at  the  thought  of  approaching  this  rare  and  noble 
artist-mind,  a  pleasure  which  Joachim  had  lately  assiduously  endeavoured 
to  bring  about,  so  that,  through  his  mediation,  Robert  Schumann  had 
asked  me  to  go  and  see  him  when  I  had  an  opportunity.  Life  has  again 
lost  something  for  me.  Of  course  Joachim  cannot  think  of  playing  in 
public  just  now,  or  of  coming  to  Brunswick  on  my  account. 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Brunswick,  lith  March  1854  :  10  p.m. 

Dearest  Mother, 

So  it  seems,  after  all,  you  have  not  received  my  last 
letter  from  Hamburg  (with  an  enclosure  for  Thode)  1  I  begged  you  in  it 
to  send  me  an  answer  quickly,  so  that  I  might  find  a  few  lines  awaiting 
me  here.  I  have  been  waiting  for  them  in  vain  since  the  day  before 
yesterday,  so  that,  in  the  first  place,  I  don't  know  what  to  do.  I  left 
Hamburg  on  Saturday  the  11th,  and  look  back  on  the  time  I  spent  there 
with  the  most  unclouded  happiness.  I  remained  about  24  hours  in 
Hanover,  where  I  had  a  very  pleasant  time  with  Joachim  and  Klind- 
worth,  and  heard  a  very  good  Quartet  at  the  house  of  the  former. 

Here,  on  the  contrary,  it  is  perfectly  horrid. 

My  concert  in  the  theatre  is  just  over.  The  best  singers  were  hoarse, 
and  the  interest  was  centred  in  myself  alone.  The  room  was  pretty 
empty  ;  the  audience  pretty  cold,  except  in  the  Beethoven  Concerto  ; — 
and,  to  be  brief,  I  am  very  much  dissatisfied.  Before  all  else  I  want 
now  to  know  whether  I  can  stay  in  Dresden  :  my  room  is  given  up,  so 
where  shall  I  go  1  At  present  I  don't  feel  much  inclined  for  Berlin. 
There  I  should  have  to  submit  to  be  cheated  at  the  hotel,  and  I  don't 
exactly  feel  disposed  for  that. 

They  let  me  give  my  concert  here  at  a  very  unfavourable  moment. 
The  impending  arrival  of  Pepita,*  who  has  not  yet  been  seen  here,  was 

*  A  dancer. 


NORTH   GERMANY.  193 

advertised  a  few  days  ago,  and  has  aroused  tlie  local  curiosity  to  the 
highest  pitch,  so  that  nothing  else  is  talked  of.  It  seemed  as  if  every- 
thing had  conspired  against  me  here.  The  piano  was  very  bad.  Eitt- 
miiller  had  promised  me  a  splendid  one  of  his  own ;  he  came  with  me 
himself  from  Hanover,  and  we  both  waited  in  vain  for  the  promised 
piano  from  Gottingen  ;  now  it  has  arrived — a  couple  of  hours  before 
the  concert,  consequently  too  late  !    The  Duke,  also,  is  absent,  travelling. 

Yesterday  I  had  an  awfully  slow  time  at  Herr  v.  Y.'s,  with  three 
other  lieutenants  and  the  tenor  S.  I  had  to  accompany  his  musical  blue- 
stocking of  a  wife  in  a  couple  of  dozen  songs.  She  is  rather  Austrian, 
but  somewhat  more  passable  than  her  husband.  By  tomorrow  evening  I 
hope  to  have  received  a  letter  from  you,  and  to  be  able  to  start  for 
Dresden.  If  not,  I  shall  go  to  Hanover,  in  spite  of  Ida  Spohr's  kindness, 
to  stay  a  couple  of  days  with  Joachim.  In  Hanover  at  any  rate  one 
feeds  a  little  better  than  here  :  here  it  is  bad  beyond  all  description. 
Wretched  tea,  wretched  coffee,  wretched  dinner,  no  porter,  no  Chester 
[sic]  cheese — everything  miserable ;  when  one  comes  from  Hamburg  it  is 
enough  to  drive  one  to  suicide. 

Now  I  observe  for  the  first  time  how  well  I  was,  physically,  in 
Hamburg, — my  digestion  especially.  I  could  become  sentimental  in 
thinking  of  it !  A  healthy  material  life  means  a  great  deal :  long  live 
materialism ! 

Rosalie  Spohr  is  just  now  giving  concerts  in  Holland.  Of  course  I 
often  go  to  see  Ida ;  she  is  very  amiable.  But  that  "  does  not  go  far,"  as 
the  post-office  wittily  wrote  on  my  Berlin  friend  Kolb's  letter.  I  have 
got  immensely  spoiled  by  Hamburg.  Next  Thursday  I  ought  to  have 
dined  with  Jenisch,  but  how  !  I  am  not  joking  when  I  assure  you  that 
the  tears  are  in  my  eyes.  .  .  .  Such  a  Hamburg  luncheon  !  Long  live 
Krebs  !     Down  with  Hoplit ! 

Next  Saturday  or  Sunday  a  parcel  from  Hamburg  wiU  arrive  for  me 
in  Dresden.  Amongst  other  things  it  contains  some  excellent  tea  for 
you,  so  please  open  it.  There  will  be  a  letter  for  Schuberth  in  the 
parcel.     I  hope  I  shall  soon  get  a  letter  from  you. 

Adieu ;  I  am  sleepy,  and  very,  very  sulky.     Farewell. 

Compassionate  me ! 


DRESDEN— CHOCIESZEWICE— BERLIN 


CHAPTER  X. 

DRESDEN— CHOGIESZEWIGE— BERLIN. 

SPRING    1854 — WINTER    1855. 

TO  FRANZ  LISZT. 

Dresden,  30^/i  April  1854. 

DoHNAiscHB  Strassb  3/IL 

My  very  dear  and  illustrious  Master, 

As  I  like  to  push  my  conscience,  as  your  pupil,  beyond 
purely  musical  limits,  and  as  I  know  your  aversion  to  useless  conversa- 
tions— an  aversion  which  I  share — I  have  not  ventured  to  trouble  you 
with  a  correspondence  which  would  have  deserved  to  be  placed  in  that 
category,  since  my  last  letter,  in  Avhich  I  discharged  myself  of  some  little 
commissions  I  had  done  for  you. 

My  ^^ fails  et  gestes"  in  Hamburg  etc.,  as  you  are  pleased  kindly  to 
designate  my  recent  poor  attempts  as  a  pianist  of  the  third  order — 
attempts  which  have  perhaps  been  a  little  happier  than  those  of  my  late 
debut  in  Vienna  last  year — seemed  to  me,  on  my  return  to  Dresden,  so 
paltry  and  still-born,  that  I  thought  it  would  be  childish  and  inexcusable, 
and  therefore  impossible,  to  resuscitate  them  by  a  posthumous  account  of 
them  which  would  have  made  you  smile. 

I  should  doubtless  have  ventured  to  write  to  you  about  myself,  if  I 
had  had  anything  serious  to  tell  you,  such  as  the  results  of  Berlioz' 
concerts  at  Dresden,  and  I  should  certainly  not  have  delayed  replying  to 
your  very  kind  letter,  for  which  please  receive  my  warmest  thanks,  if  I 
had  not  thought  it  essential  to  wait  till  after  the  third  concert,  which 
took  place  last  night,  and  which  promised  to  be  the  decisive  one. 

Well,  it  is  a  very  happy  moment  for  me  to  be  able  to  give  you  the 
best  possible  news  of  an  event  which  you  cannot  have  more  at  heart  than 
I,  who  have  felt  my  enthusiasm  for  Berlioz  increase  at  each  concert. 
Last  night's  concert  was  one  of  the  most  brilliant  triumphs  that  Berljo? 


198  HANS  VON   BULOW. 

has  celebrated  in  Germany.  A  full  room,  overflowing  with  all  that  there 
is  of  the  most  choice,  of  the  most  "  eeathetically "  elegant  in  Dresden, 
received  the  composer  with  the  utmost  warmth  on  his  entrance.  The 
audience  underlined  every  piece  on  the  programme  by  their  repeated 
applause,  by  rinforzandos  unheard  in  Dresden  since  Wagner's  flight ; 
they  encored  the  third  number  of  the  mystic  mystery,  and  clapped  with 
frenzy  when  a  laurel-wreath  was  thrown  from  one  of  the  boxes  in  the 
second  circle,  and  fell  at  the  composer's  feet.  In  spite  of  their  fatigue, 
the  orchestra  surpassed  themselves  in  their  performance  of  the  last  piece 
on  the  programme,  the  Overture  to  'Cellini.'  An  ovation,  quietly 
prepared  by  the  younger  generation  in  the  orchestra,  terminated  this 
memorable  evening  in  the  midst  of  the  wildest  applause  of  the  audience. 
(Reissiger  and  even  Lipinski  had  opposed  this  in  the  morning  ;  for  the 
rest  Reissiger  has  behaved  very  well  in  regard  to  Berlioz,  but  his 
enthusiasm  freezes  when  it  reaches  envy-point.)  Mr.  de  Liittichau 
immediately  begged  the  artist  to  favour  them  with  a  repetition  of  the 
"  last "  concert,  and  it  will  take  place  tomorrow,  Monday.  Thus,  four 
concerts  instead  of  two  ;  and  the  almost  certain  prospect  of  the  per- 
formance of  '  Cellini,'  to  which  the  playing  of  the  two  Overtures  to  the 
opera  will  have  contributed  not  a  little.  The  perfidious  criticism  of  Mr. 
Banck  has  disturbed  the  revival  of  '  Faust.'  At  the  second  concert 
there  was  not  a  large  audience,  but  it  must  be  added  that  those  who 
were  there  belonged  to  the  elite  of  the  public  from  the  musical  point  of 
view,  and  that  they  showed  themselves  very  demonstrative.  The 
remarkable  crescendo  in  the  numbers  of  the  audience,  which  gave  the 
lie  yesterday  in  so  brilliant  a  manner  to  the  "  press,"  would  have  been 
evident  at  the  renewal  of  '  Faust,'  had  it  not  been  for  those  villainous 
insects,  the  critics.  The  whole  orchestra  and  the  singers  are  plunged 
head  over  ears  in  enthusiasm.  They  are  happy  at  being  able  to  estimate 
at  their  just  value  their  own  talents  and  capacities,  by  means  of  this 
incomparable  conductor,  who  makes  them  feel  the  disgrace  and  sterility 
of  the  five  or  six  last  years  ;  and  they  all,  beginning  with  Mr.  de 
Liittichau,  who  is  beaming  up  to  a  point  of  which  I  should  never  have 
deemed  him  capable,  would  like  to  keep  Berlioz  at  Dresden  as  their  con- 
ductor. One  may  be  satisfied  with  everybody,  and  the  best  feelings  reign 
everywhere.  After  the  first  rehearsal  Mr.  Berlioz  had  destroyed  every 
germ  of  opposition,  converted  the  most  refractory,  and  God  only  knows 
how  many  of  these  there  were  !  In  short,  your  predictions,  when  you 
were  in  Dresden  last  year,  might  very  well  soon  come  to  pass.  Mr.  de 
Liittichau  has  already  come  forward  with  more  than  hints  to  Mr.  Berlioz ; 
he  has  asked  him,  amongst  other  things,  to  get  up  Gluck's  *  Orpheus ' 
and  to  conduct  it,  Mr.  de  L.  intending  to  stage  it  next  season.     To  Mr, 


DRESDEN — CHOCIESZEWICE — BERLIN.  199 

Berlioz'  remark  that  there  was  not  a  spare  place  in  Dresden,  all  being 
very  well  filled,  he  replied  in  these  pretty  clear  words  :  '*  Who  knows  ! " 

Just  fancy !  a  week  ago  Krebs,  at  the  Catholic  Church,  bitterly 
reproached  and  seriously  reprimanded  the  orchestra  for  having  played 
so  magnificently  under  the  conducting  of  a  "  foreigner."  What  a  public 
humiliation  for  the  local  conductors,  under  whose  direction  the  orchestra 
had  never  succeeded  in  showing  so  much  zeal  and  ardour  !  This  sounds 
like  a  made-up  story,  and  yet  it  is  not  so  in  the  least.  Krebs  has  the 
instinctive  feeling  that  something  extraordinary  is  preparing,  which 
might  very  well  turn  against  himself.  In  spite  of  this,  he  is  so  stupid 
as  to  make  an  unequivocal  opposition  to  the  sincere  and  cordial  admira- 
tion which  Eeissiger  has  from  the  first  moment  shown,  and  continues  to 
show,  for  the  works  of  Berlioz.  The  other  day,  at  a  dinner  at  Mr.  de 
Liittichau's  at  which  I  was  present,  Krebs  shone  in  an  unaccustomed 
manner  by  his  absence,  accentuated  by  the  presence  of  Keissiger,  Fischer, 
Lipinski,  Schubert,  Dawison,  etc.  At  this  dinner,  given  in  honour  of 
Berlioz,  the  minister  of  Zeschau  was  also  present. 

Mr.  Berlioz  will  probably  write  to  you  himself  this  morning  and  give 
you  his  impressions,  and  tell  you  how  far  he  is  personally  satisfied ;  I 
have  therefore  nothing  to  add  to  this  chapter,  reserving  to  myself  always 
to  keep  you  au  courant,  if  your  hopes  should  receive  a  positive  or 
approximate  afiirmation. 

I  hope  you  have  still  a  suflBciently  good  opinion  of  me,  not  to  doubt 
that,  during  Berlioz'  stay  in  Dresden,  I  have  done  all  I  coidd  to  be  of 
service  to  this  Master,  whom  I  admire  and  revere  with  all  my  heart, 
whilst  remembering  with  gratitude  the  origin  of  this  admiration.  I  have 
not  been  able  to  do  anything  much  ;  for  instance,  I  have  only  been  able 
to  write  one  preparatory  article  in  a  paper,  the  editor  of  which  did  not 
accept  my  ofier  of  writing  the  critiques  of  the  concerts  gratis,  for  fear 
of  wounding  the  susceptibility  of  his  regular  critic.  On  the  other  hand, 
I  enrolled  under  the  banner  of  Berlioz,  without  any  ostentation,  some 
enthusiasts  among  the  artists,  and  especially  among  those  of  the  orchestra. 
At  a  given  moment  it  would  perhaps  be  well  to  remind  Mr.  Berlioz  that 
the  first  and  the  warmest  friends  he  has  found  in  Dresden  in  the 
orchestra  and  the  audience,  belong  to  the  Wagner  party,  and  have  long 
belonged  to  it.  The  words  I  have  just  written — useless  perhaps — have 
suggested  themselves  to  my  mind  by  the  remembrance  of  some  of  Mme. 
Berlioz's  chatter  on  the  subject  of  Richard  Wagner,  which  has  irritated 
me  a  good  deal.  But  she  is,  on  the  whole,  an  excellent  woman,  with  just 
the  failing  of  being  rather  a  chatter-box,  and  of  telling  a  lot  of  tales  to 
which  it  would  be  wrong  to  pay  any  attention. 


200  HANS  VON   BiJLOW. 

Ritter  is  enthusiastic  about  Berlioz.  Although  he  is  suflFering  from 
the  effects  of  an  operation,  he  seconded  me  at  the  first  performance  of 
'  Faust,'  by  taking  a  box  with  me  for  sixteen  people,  to  which  we  invited 
our  friends  and  acquaintances,  all  the  best  people  there  are,  such  as 
Blassmann,  Hahnel,  etc. 

A  thousand  thanks  for  the  score  of  the  '  Kunstler  '  chorus  ;  I  have 
had  to  get  gradually  accustomed  to  the  rhythmic  alterations  you  have 
thought  well  to  introduce.  The  *  dlternativa '  is,  to  me,  the  most  sym- 
pathetic part.  It  is  sublime,  and  I  had  already  felt  it  to  be  so  at 
Carlsruhe. 

You  are  very  good  to  think  of  me,  and  to  wish  to  make  known  to  me 
your  new  compositions  for  the  piano.  As  to  the  piece  on  *  Cellini,'  I 
played  it  at  Brunswick.  It  was  tantamount  to  a  fiasco  for  me — which 
increased  my  pleasure  all  the  more,  a  pleasure  shared  by  Litolff,  who  was 
present  at  the  concert  as  audience.  He  has  given  me  the  corrected  sheets 
of  your  chef-d'oeuvre  of  a  Scherzo,  and  I  have  already  been  studying  it  for 
a  long  time. 

I  will  send  you  very  soon  the  article  of  Mme.  la  Princesse  Wittgen- 
stein, which  I  have  translated  for  Brendel.  As  to  the  signature,  I  had 
to  invent  one,  as  I  was  firmly  convinced  that  you  were  not  the  author 
of  this  polemic. 

I  present  you  my  most  humble  excuses  for  the  "  flatness  of  W.  J."  It 
is  through  my  hands  that  the  correspondence  of  Singer  passed,  and  I  had 
the  unjustifiable  caprice  of  leaving  in  it  my  paw-mark.  I  will  only  add 
that  I  acted  in  this  bond  fide;  I  remember  that  there  was  a  time  when 
insinuations  of  that  kind  did  not  altogether  displease  you.  But  as  it  is 
otherwise  now,  I  am  the  first  to  retract,  and  I  will  beware  of  a  repetition 
of  the  ofTence,  all  the  more  as  I  am  sick  of  the  pen — of  criticism.  I  will 
leave  to  Hoplit  the  care  of  making  himself  illustrious,  and  even  of  getting 
himself  canonised  as  **  santo  "  and  "  chiaro  "  by  this  means. 

The  very  sound  of  "  Weimar"  or  "  Leipzig"  is  enough  to  throw  me 
into  a  fever  and  a  passion.  Those  wretched  people  go  on  everlastingly 
persecuting  and  illtreating  me ;  I  have  sworn  that  I  will  pay  them  back 
one  day  all  I  owe  them  with  interest.  I  regret  bitterly  that  I  was  so 
weak  towards  David,  who  has  known  how  to  take  advantage  of  it ! 
These  people  now  think  they  have  a  right  to  despise  me  as  a  man  with- 
out any  character,  on  account  of  my  "  inconsistency." 

I  shall  have  great  pleasure  in  being  present  at  your  rehearsal  in 
Leipzig.  This  little  journey  will  also  give  me  the  opportunity  of  giving 
my  opinion  to  Doctor  Hartel,  which  I  am  resolved  to  do. 

I  am  awaiting,  at  Dresden,  the  result  of  the  steps  I  have  taken,  in 
the  hope  of  putting  an  end  to  my  civilian  uncertainties.     I  must,  before 


DRESDEN — CHOCIESZEWICE — BERLIN.  201 

all  else,  have  a  passport  en  regie.  I  am  very  much  afraid  that  my  most 
earnest  wish  to  leave  Germany  and  to  bury  myself  at  "Warsaw,  as  a  pianist 
"  in  the  service  of  "  a  Russian  General — and  that  as  soon  as  possible — will 
now  meet  with  rather  serious  obstacles,  and  that  this  project  will  prove 
entirely  abortive. 

I  have  not  yet  got  any  decisive  news,  and  that  is  why  I  have  not 
spoken  to  you  about  it  before. 

I  would  not  cover  myself  with  ridicule  by  sending  you  the  pieces 
of  which  you  speak  ;  they  were  the  merest  trifles  which  found  by  chance 
an  imbecile  of  a  publisher.  But  in  case  I  sliould  soon  finish  a  musical 
daguerreotype  of  my  own  (an  orchestral  work),  I  should  venture  to  lay 
it  at  once  before  you. 

TO  FRANZ  LISZT. 

Dresden,  &th  May  1854. 
My  vbbt  dear  and  illustrious  Master, 

At  the  present  moment  I  am  enjoying  to  the  full  the  echo  of  the 
intoxicating  music  of  Berlioz,  in  which  I  have  passed  three  weeks  which 
I  should  be  very  sorry  to  see  erased  from  the  programme  of  my  life.  Of 
the  barometer  of  my  admiration  and  sympathy  for  the  works  of  this 
Master  I  am  able  to  judge  now  that  I  have  a  perfect  understanding  of 
them.  I  understand  and  appreciate  his  music  in  all  the  unity  of  its 
individuality ;  and  the  many  flights  of  his  genius,  which  had  struck  me 
at  first,  do  not  shine  any  longer  in  the  darkness,  for  that  is  dissipated. 

You  do  not  yet  know  the  two  last  parts  of  '  Faust.'  Ah  !  how  I  envy 
you  !  The  fourth  part  especially  is  magnificent  in  imagination,  sublime 
in  originality. 

I  have  promised  Mr.  Berlioz  to  arrange  the  first  Overture  to  his 
'  Cellini '  for  the  piano  a  quatre  mains,  so  that  it  may  be  incorporated  in 
the  piano  score  to  be  published,  like  the  operas  of  Spohr,  for  example ; 
as  I  have  time  just  now,  I  should  like  to  set  to  the  work  without  delay. 
But  where  should  I  get  the  score,  unless  you  would  have  the  great  kind- 
ness to  lend  me  yours  for  a  fortnight  at  most  ? 

If  a  publisher  could  be  found,  I  would  write  a  pamphlet  on  *  Cellini,' 
as  a  preparation  for  the  opera  at  Dresden.  If  you  know  of  one,  and  if 
you  invite  me  to  do  it,  I  am  ready  to  do  so.  Of  course  it  is  understood 
that  I  shall  not  expect  payment  for  it.  Mr.  Berlioz  has  had  much  pleasure 
from  my  translating  of  the  article  I  enclose  herewith  from  a  Dresden 
paper,  which  does  great  honour  to  the  spirit  of  its  author.  It  is  at  his 
instance  that  I  send  it  to  you. 


202  HANS  VON   BULOW. 

And,  writing  again  to  Liszt  from  Dresden,  on  the  29th  June,  he  says  : 

My  future  is  now  certain  for  a  pretty  long  time  to  come.  When  you 
know  how,  you  will  not  think  I  have  been  over-dazzled  or  enchanted ; 
but,  since  it  is  settled,  I  am  less  uneasy,  and  I  am  not  suffering  too  much 
from  frustrated  ambition.  I  have  just  accepted  an  engagement  Avhich  has 
been  offered  me  by  a  rich  Polish  Count — Mycielski — who  will  take  me 
off  with  him  towards  the  beginning  of  September,  to  be  music-master  to 
his  three  or  four  prodigies  of  daughters,  at  his  country  seat  which  is 
situated  between  Posen  and  Breslau.  I  shall  have  four  hundred  crowns 
a  year,  and  of  course  my  living,  and  all  that  is  necessary  to  enable  me  to 
fulfil  my  daily  task,  which  is,  to  give  three  or  four  lessons  a  day,  and  to 
amuse  the  people  in  the  evening  with  my  playing.  As  the  family  is 
living  in  Dresden  at  the  present  moment  I  have  already  begun  to  work 
a  few  weeks  ago,  by  giving  lessons.  I  shall  have  plenty  of  time,  when  I 
am  there,  to  work  by  myself  just  as  I  like  ;  to  compose  Trios,  Sym- 
phonies, etc.  a  la  Eubinstein,  with  or  without  inspiration ;  and  I  shall 
also  have  the  advantage  of  forgetting  and  ignoring  everything  in  the 
musical  or  unmusical  world  which  might  vex  me  or  irritate  my  nerves, 
and  also  of  strengthening  my  health  by  a  stay  in  the  country,  whilst 
strengthening  at  the  same  time  my  apathy  and  my  disgust  at  a  good  many 
things — a  kind  of  well-being  which  I  have  begun  to  enjoy  lately,  and 
which  would  not  even  be  disturbed  by  the  otherwise  agreeable  news  of 
the  downfall  of  one  of  my  hetes  noires. 

Please  excuse  the  unrestrainedness  of  these  intellectual  rambles,  which 
you  have  so  often  tolerated  with  indulgence  in  my  epistolary  conversation. 
And  now  let  us  speak  of  other  things  than  the  internal  and  external 
tribulations  of  my  more  or  less  defective  career.  I  am  not  in  the  least 
neglecting  the  piano ;  I  am  studying  Bach's  Preludes  and  Fugues,  your 
'Etudes  d'apr^s  Paganini,'  and  Beethoven's  33  Variations,  Op.  120,  for 
which  I  have  a  most  tremendous  weakness.  I  am  just  in  the  midst  of 
a  Fantasia  for  orchestra  (in  B  minor),  in  the  style  of  my  friend  Raflf ; 
I  have  just  re-instrumentated  and  entirely  corrected  the  Overture  to 
'  Caesar ' ;  and  I  am  making  successive  transcriptions  from  '  Tannhauser ' 
for  four  hands,  which  are  slow  in  coming  out. 

"Wagner  is  so  good  as  to  give  me  news  of  himself  from  time  to  time. 
He  has  promised  to  send  me  his  first  opera  of  the  '  Nibelungen/  as  soon 
as  he  has  made  a  fair  copy  of  it,  so  that  I  may  make  the  piano  score 
from  it.  To  my  great  regret  I  was  unable  to  accept  his  invitation  for 
the  Festival  at  Sitten.  But  the  one  who  might  very  well  have  done  it, 
and  who  was  wrong  in  not  wanting  to  go,  was  Joachim.  I  have  just 
heard,  I  don't  know  from  whom,   that  my  friend,  who  is  so  terribly 


DRESDEN — CHOCIESZEWICE — BERLIN.  203 

luke-wann  as  a  correspondent,  is  gone  to  Vienna,  to  spend  his  summer 
holidays,  as  I  was  told.     Is  it  true  ? 

Hans  spent  the  summer  months  of  this  year  with  his  mother  in  Dresden, 
and  some  of  the  family  letters  written  during  that  time  show  that  he  was  on 
friendly  terms  with  some  of  the  Polish  aristocracy,  especially  with  the  Countess 
Kamienska  and  her  daughter  Helene,  who  had  their  fixed  home  in  Dresden. 
As  these  two  ladies  kept  up  a  very  pleasant  house,  and  were  much  visited  by 
people  of  their  own  nation,  it  was  very  likely  there  that  young  Biilow  made 
the  acquaintance  of  Count  Mycielski.  The  latter  begged  Biilow  to  give  his 
daughters  lessons  in  music  as  long  as  the  family  was  in  Dresden  ;  for,  like 
many  other  noble  and  wealthy  Polish  families,  the  Mycielskis  were  in  the 
habit  of  spending  a  few  months  there  every  year.  Biilow  agreed  to  do  this, 
and  shortly  afterwards  the  Count  made  a  proposal  that  Biilow  should  take  up 
a  permanent  position  in  his  house,  as  master  to  his  daughters  and  pianist  to  the 
family.  In  spite  of  Billow's  urgent  longing  to  be  able  to  stand  on  his  own 
legs  pecuniarily,  the  independent  spirit  of  the  young  artist  would  with 
difl&culty  have  submitted  to  taking  such  a  post,  had  it  not  been  for  the  thought 
of  Paris,  and  the  wish — which  the  Master  Liszt  had  excited  and  kept  strongly 
before  him — to  take  his  chance  there  as  soon  as  possible  as  a  public  player. 

He  therefore  resolved,  by  giving  up  for  a  time  his  freedom,  to  earn  for 
himself  the  means  to  defray  the  expenses  of  a  debut  in  Paris. 

Writing  to  his  friend  Alexander  Ritter  from  Dresden,  in  the  early  part  of 
August,  he  says  : — 

I  have  not  very  consolatory  news  from  Zurich.  HE  is  very  much 
out  of  spirits,  and  discouraged  enough  to  shoot  himself.  HE  must 
be  in  very  precarious  outward  circumstances  :  Liszt  spoke  of  an  exchange. 
Try  to  warm  people  up  a  little,  so  that — perhaps  through  Johanna* — HE 
may  be  helped  at  least  for  the  moment. 

As  the  attempt  to  procure  Biilow's  letters  to  the  French  Master,  Hector 
Berlioz,  has  proved  unsuccessful,  and  as  in  all  probability  they  do  not  any 
longer  exist,  the  two  following  letters  to  Biilow  may  fill  this  gap  : — f 

HECTOR  BERLIOZ  TO  HANS  VON  BULOW. 

28^^  July  1854. 
It  is  a  charming  surprise  that  you  have  given  me,  and  your  manu- 
script is  all  the  more  welcome  as  Brandus,  the  publisher,  who  is  at  this 

*  Johanna  Wagner  (1828-1894),  the  celebrated  singer  and  actress,  and  a  niece  of 
"Wagner's. 

t  These  two  letters  are  taken  from  the  '  Correspondance  inedite  de  Hector 
Berlioz  (1819-1868),'  by  the  kind  permission  of  Monsieur  C.  Levy,  in  Paris,  the 
publisher  of  them. 


204  HANS  VON   BiJLOW. 

moment  engraving  '  Cellini,'  had  already  chosen  a  somewhat  obscure  and 
sixth-rate  pianist  to  arrange  the  Overture. 

Your  work  is  admirable ;  it  has  a  clearness  and  fidelity  which  are 
rare,  and  is  as  little  difficult  as  it  was  possible  to  make  it  without  alter- 
ing my  score.  So  I  thank  you  with  all  my  heart.  I  shall  go  and  see 
Brandus  this  evening,  and  take  him  your  precious  manuscript.  I  have 
done  a  great  deal  of  work  since  my  return  from  Dresden ;  I  have  done 
the  first  part  of  my  sacred  Trilogy  'Le  Songe  d'Hdrode.'  This  score 
precedes  the  embryo  which  you  know  under  the  name  of  'Fuite  en 
ifegypte,'  and,  together  with  the  *  Ariv^e  a  Sais,'  will  form  a  complete 
whole  of  sixteen  numbers,  lasting  altogether  an  hour  and  a  half,  includ- 
ing the  entr'actes.  It  is  not  at  all  wearisome,  as  you  see,  in  comparison 
with  the  sacred  wearisomenesses  which  overwhelm  one  for  four  hours  at 
a  stretch.* 

I  have  tried  some  new  devices :  the  melody  of  the  '  Insomnie 
d'H^rode '  is  written  in  G  minor  on  the  following  scale,  designated  by  I 
don't  know  what  Greek  name  in  the  Plain-Song : 


S 


ifeni 


This  induces  some  very  sombre  harmonies,  and  cadences  of  a  certain 
character  which  seemed  to  me  appropriate  to  the  situation.  You  were 
very  taciturn  when  you  sent  me  the  parcel  of  music ;  I  should  have  been 
so  pleased  to  have  a  few  lines  from  you  ! 

Your  sister  passed  through  Paris  lately,  but  so  hurriedly  that,  when 
I  received  the  card  she  had  left  at  the  house  early  one  morning,  she  had 
already  started  for  London. 

Will  you  please  give  my  best  compliments  to  your  mother.  Shall 
you  not  come  to  Paris  1  I  am  starting  in  a  few  days  for  Munich,  where 
I  shall  stay  three  weeks.  Later  on,  towards  November,  I  shall  come  to 
Germany  again,  and  perhaps  I  shall  see  you  in  Dresden. 

Remember  me  to  Mr.  and  Madame  Pohl,  and  give  a  hand-shake  to 
that  excellent  Lipinski. 

HECTOR  BERLIOZ  TO  HANS  VON  BULOW. 

1st  September  1854. 

I  was  delighted  to  get  your  kind  letter,  and  hasten  to  thank  you  for 
it.     I  did  not  go  to  Munich,  for,  just  when  I  was  about  to  go,  a  post 

*  A  play  upon  the  words  'assommaut,  assommoirs,  asaorament.' 


DRESDEN — CHOCIESZEWICE — BERLIN.  205 

became  vacant  at  the  '  Academie  des  Beaux- Arts '  of  our  Institute,  and  I 
remained  in  Paris  in  order  to  take  the  necessary  steps  imposed  upon  the 
candidates.  I  resigned  myself  unreservedly  to  the  terrible  visits,  the 
letters,  and  all  that  the  Acjidemy  inflicts  on  those  who  desire  to  "  intrare 
in  suo  docto  corpore  "  (Moliere's  Latin) ;  and  IMr.  Clapisson  was  appointed. 

So  now  it  is  put  off  for  another  time.  For  I  am  resolved  to  go  on 
presenting  myself  until  death  ensues. 

I  have  just  been  spending  a  week  at  the  sea-side,  in  a  village  in 
Normandy,  little  known ;  in  a  few  days  I  shall  start  for  the  South, 
where  I  am  expected  by  my  sister  and  my  uncles  for  a  family  reunion. 

I  do  not  expect  to  return  to  Germany  tiU  the  winter.  Doubtless 
Liszt  is  right  in  approving  of  your  having  accepted  the  position  which 
was  offered  to  you  in  Poland ;  in  any  case,  you  must  not  lose  sight  of 
your  journey  to  Paris,  if  you  can  undertake  it  with  perfect  freedom  of 
mind  as  regards  the  financial  result  of  the  concerts.  I  long  to  be  able 
to  make  you  acquainted  witli  all  our  friends  of  art,  whose  qualities  of 
mind  and  heart  might  render  their  acquaintance  agreeable  to  you. 

You  know  French  so  well  that  you  will  be  able  to  understand 
Parisian;  and  you  will  perhaps  be  amused  to  see  how  the  world  of 
writers  loves  to  play  with  phrases,  and  those  who  presume  to  call  them- 
selves philosophers  ride  [on  the  hobby-horse  of]  their  ideas. 

I  shall  be  quite  at  your  disposal  on  my  return,  and  very  anxious 
to  see  the  orchestral  compositions  of  which  you  speak.  My  score  of 
'  Cellini '  could  not  possibly  find  a  more  intelligent  and  friendly  critic 
than  yourself ;  allow  me  to  thank  you  for  having  thought  of  doing  that 
work  about  it  in  Mr.  Pohl's  book.  For  the  rest,  this  work  is  certainly 
unlucky ;  the  King  of  Saxony  gets  killed  just  as  they  were  going  to  give 
it  in  Dresden.  ...  It  is  the  fatality  of  the  ancients,  and  one  might  say 
of  this  what  Virgil  said  of  Dido  :  "  Ter  sese  attollens  cubitoque  adnixa 
levavit :  Ter  revoluta  toro  est." 

What  a  grand  composer  was  Virgil !  what  melody  and  what  harmony- 
he  had !  It  is  to  him  that  belongs  the  dying  exclamation :  "  Qualis 
artifex  pereo  ! "  and  not  to  that  poser  of  a  Nero,  who  had  but  one  inspira- 
tion in  his  life — the  setting  fire  on  one  night  to  the  four  corners  of  Rome ; 
a  proof  that  a  mediocre  man  may  sometimes  have  a  grand  idea. 

The  opera  reopened  yesterday.  Madame  Stoltz  made  her  reappear- 
ance in  the  role  of  the  Favorita.  When  I  saw  her  make  her  appearance 
on  the  stage,  I  really  took  her  for  an  '  appaiition.'  *  Her  voice  has  also 
suffered  the  irreparable  outrages  from  the  ravages  of  time.  The  new 
administration  of  the  Opera  had  made  a  coup  d'etat  by  taking  from  the 

*  j^  play  on  the  words  '  apparition '  and  '  reapparition '  in  the  previous  sentence. 


206  HAKS  VON   BULOW. 

journalists  their  free  entrance,  so  that  the  poor  Stoltz  will  have  made  her 
rentree  in  vain.  There  was  a  council  of  war,  in  the  foyer,  of  all  the  most 
powerful  (goose)  quills,  and  we  unanimously  decided  that  we  must  declare 
to  the  Opera  a  "  "War  of  silence."  Consequently  not  a  word  will  be  said 
of  the  reopening,  nor  of  the  debut  of  Madame  Stoltz,  until  the  manage- 
ment returns  to  better  sentiments. 

I  am  working  at  a  long  ^  feuilleton  de  silence '  which  will  appear  next 
week,  and  which  bothers  me  much.  Adieu,  the  writing  to  you  has  some- 
what refreshed  me. 

Writing  to  Liszt  from  Dresden,  on  the  26th  September  1854,  Biilow  says  : 

In  a  week  at  latest  I  shall  have  left  Dresden,  and  started  for 
Chocieszewice  near  Krbben,  in  the  Grand-Duchy  of  Posen.  Possibly  I 
shall  make  a  trip  to  Berlin  in  the  month  of  November,  especially  if  my 
solitude  weighs  too  heavily  on  me.  I  am,  alas,  one  of  those  weak  and 
rather  passive  natures  that  cannot  do  without  the  society  of  others,  nor 
without  all  sorts  of  impressions  and  emotions,  in  order  to  be  encouraged 
and  inspired  into  productiveness,  and  even  into  the  most  simple  intel- 
lectual activity  which  requires  abstraction.  This  feeling  of  isolation, 
which  might  easily  become  fatal  to  me,  in  spite  of  its  advantages  of 
which  I  am  fully  aware,  will  probably  be  redoubled  by  the  surroundings 
of  Chocieszewice. 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Chocieszewice,  10^/i  October  1854. 
Prcescriptum :  You  can  read  the  letter  without  any  anxious  beating 
of  your  motherly  heart ;  it  is  in  no  way  impregnated  with  my  mood  of 
the  7th  October. 

Dearest  Mother, 

I  wish  and  hope  much  that  you  are  feeling  better  and  more 
comfortable  than  I  am  at  the  present  time. 

Last  night's  sleep  has  not  yet  fully  restored  me,  after  the  two  previous 
miserable  nights  of  unsettled  locomotion. 

The  journey  from  Dresden  to  Breslau  by  night  is  horrible — an  hour 
and  a  half's  stop  at  Gbrlitz,  and  three  quarters  of  an  hour  ditto  at  Kohl- 
fuhrt.  Breslau  is,  as  a  whole,  a  really  beautiful  town,  but  the  population 
is  perfectly  disgusting.  Palestine,  and  no  mistake.  Elegance  without 
taste.  Predominating  types  of  Jewish  faces,  which  form  complete  varia- 
tions to  the  tune  of  Judaism.  The  upper  half  of  the  face  sometimes 
beautiful,  the  lower  half  very  ugly  and  of  a  repulsive  colour.      I  went  to 


DRESDEN — CHOCIESZEWICE — BERLIN.  207 

see  Hesse  (the  organist),  a  friend  of  Spohr's,  and  the  pianist  Karl 
Schnabel,  but  did  not  find  either  of  them  at  home.  Old  Mosewius,  the 
music-director  of  the  University,  and  well  known  through  his  analysis 
of  Bach's  Passion-music,  was  however  very  much  pleased  with  my  visit, 
and  took  me  to  the  University,  where  he  showed  me  the  '  Aula '  and 
another  concert-room, — in  which  Liszt  had  formerly  played, — the 
musical  library,  etc.  He  had  been  well  acquainted  with  General  Biilow- 
Dennewitz,  and  told  me  also  about  his  compositions. 

I  also  went  to  the  pianoforte  manufactory  of  Bessalie ;  he  makes 
very  serviceable  concert-grands,  and  was  very  pleasant  to  me.  Henselt 
was  there  a  few  weeks  ago,  and  had  written  to  him  his  approbation  of 
the  sounding-board. 

At  the  theatre  I  saw  '  Robert  le  diable,'  and  indeed  a  very  decent 
performance,  both  by  singers  and  orchestra,  including  the  conducting. 
A  very  good  theatre,  both  inside  and  out,  and  situated  in  a  splendid 
square.  Very  well  lighted ;  began  at  7  o'clock,  of  which  I  was  very  glad, 
as  I  did  not  know  how  I  should  have  killed  time  till  the  departure  of  the 
mail-coach  for  Rawicz  at  11  o'clock  at  night.  I  alighted  at  the  '  Weisser 
Adler,'  in  order  not  to  be  left  sticking  in  the  road,  and  I  found  it  good 
and  cheap.  On  the  other  hand  I  had  to  pay  such  an  immense  deal  for 
overweight  of  luggage  from  Breslau  to  Rawicz,  that  I  found  I  was 
drained  pretty  dry  for  the  extra-post  from  Rawicz,  where  I  arrived  at 
6  o'clock  in  the  morning.  After  many  difficulties,  which  this  state  of 
things  occasioned  me,  I  at  last  succeeded,  thanks  to  the  special  friendli- 
ness of  the  directress  of  the  Post,  in  getting  them  to  provide  me  with 
the  necessary  means  for  continuing  my  journey,  on  my  assurance  that 
Count  Mycielski  would  make  it  all  straight  with  them  on  my  arrival.  A 
contemptible  journey,  which  I  shall  not  forget.  A  horrible  road,  fearful 
cold,  a  Biirgerwiese  *  hurricane  ;  I  finally  arrived  at  Chocieszewice  about 
half-past  ten  o'clock,  feeling  myself  gone  all  to  pieces.  I  am  so  little 
satisfied  with  the  treatment  I  have  met  with  up  to  now,  that,  if  many 
things  are  not  radically  altered  when  the  Count  returns,  I  shall  not 
endure  these  horrors  more  than  a  month.  He  went  some  days  ago,  with 
his  constellation  of  daughters  and  the  governess,  to  visit  some  relations  ; 
and,  though  he  is  expected  back  daily  and  even  hourly,  he  has  not  yet 
arrived.  For  four  weeks  I  can  and  will  bear  the  horrors.  The  castle  is 
grand ;  the  dining  halls  and  salons,  royal ;  of  fabulous  size  and  height. 
But  it  wants  a  Slavonic  temperament  to  be  able  to  endure  this  cold, 
against  which  the  warming  of  one's  inner  man  is  not  a  sufficient  counter- 

*  An  open  space  ;  in  the  outskirts  of  Dresden  at  the  time  when  this  letter  was 
written. 


208  HANS  VON  BtJLOW. 

poise  as  long  as  the  cold  lasts.  My  room  has  suffered  in  its  walls  through 
the  inundations — still  it  is  not  so  very  damp.  It  is  as  large,  in  itself 
alone,  as  the  two  rooms  in  which  you  are  now  living  in  the  Reitbahngasse, 
and  a  bit  over.  They  assure  me  that  the  stove  is  sufficient  to  warm  it 
thoroughly.  A  monster  sofa,  a  monster  table — both  extremely  homely 
and  inconvenient,  although  new  ;  a  writing-table  without  any  pigeon- 
holes, a  chest  of  drawers,  a  night-table,  and  an  equally  un-ideal  bed ; 
these,  together  with  four  chairs,  constitute  the  furniture,  which,  in  the 
enormous  size  of  the  room,  is  completely  lost.  I  invite  you  herewith  to 
house  all  the  furniture  you  have  not  room  for  with  me. 

A  dirty  old  Polish  valet,  who  understands  very  little  German,  looks 
after  me  ;  his  service  is  maintained  on  a  level  with  the  functions  of  a 
prison  jailer,  both  as  regards  quantity  and  quality.  In  this  respect  I  am 
considered  exactly  the  same  as  my  neighbour  and  "  colleague,"  a  certain 
Herr  Schreiber  from  Dresden,  a  very  good-natured,  but  very  moderately 
educated  young  man,  a  painter,  whose  room  is  separated  from  mine  by  a 
little  corridor.  Yesterday  being  my  first  day,  I  have  had  no  opportunity 
as  yet  to  protest  against  this.  I  must  wait  for  everything  till  the  Count 
comes  back. 

The  scenery  round  the  castle  is  beautiful — it  is  laid  out  like  a  park, 
and  reminds  one  a  little  of  the  corner  to  the  right  of  the  pavilion  in  the 
public  garden  in  Dresden.  "  0  Hiinerflirst ! "  *  But  then,  all  around, 
one  has  the  most  truly  Polish  peasantry — a  lot  of  villages  inhabited  by 
the  veriest  blockheads  of  Poles,  and  where  not  a  single  syllable  of 
German  is  spoken.  One  is  thus  entirely  cut  off  from  intercourse  of  any 
sort.  On  Sundays  a  travelling  cobbler  goes  round  the  neighbourhood, 
and  to  him  is  entrusted  the  restoration  of  coat-buttons,  and  the  constitu- 
tional reparation  of  chance  holes  in  garments. 

Whether  I  shall  be  able  to  find  a  barber  is  as  yet  shrouded  in  mystery. 
But  that  won't  trouble  me  very  much,  for  in  this  cold  weather  a  beard 
would  help  to  warm  me.  But  there  are  many  other  things  that  I  want 
dreadfully.  First  a  few  thalers  to  pay  for  any  letters  which  come  un- 
stamped, for  it  seems  to  me  safest  to  adopt  the  French  plan  in  regard  to 
this ;  then  two  pairs  of  gloves,  light  grey  stitched  with  black,  from 
Ammann — 7  J — he  knows  my  number,  or  rather  my  size  (for  the  numbers 
vary) ;  a  little  bottle  of  hair-oil,  and  a  small,  sharp  pair  of  scissors.  That 
is  all  for  the  present. 

The  safest  address  for  me  is  that  of  my  journey  :  c/o  Count  Myciel- 
ski,  Rawicz,  Chocieszewice,  near  Krbben,  via  Breslau. 

Will  you  be  so  good  as  to  put  in,  with  the  things  I  have  asked  for, 

*  A  well-known  conductor  of  an  out-door  orchestra  in  Dresden. 


DRESDEN — CHOCIESZEWICE — BERLIN.  209 

two  packets  of  Russian  paper-cigarettes  (Spiglasoff)  from  Philipp's  by  the 
Kreuzkirche ;  at  1 2^  silbergroschen  the  packet. 

In  all  that  I  have  hitherto  told  you,  one  thing  after  another  in  a 
mechanical,  fragmentary  way,  there  is  absolutely  nothing  to  call  forth 
pity  in  my  situation.  That,  however,  is  yet  to  follow,  and  consists  in 
the  want  of  a  grand  piano,  and,  if  such  a  want  continues,  it  will  drive 
me  away  in  a  very  short  space  of  time.  The  Count's  secretary  and 
manager,  who  is  in  possession  of  the  old  instrument  which  the  Count 
promised  me  I  should  have  for  my  own  use  in  composition  in  my  room, 
appears  to  be  unwilling  to  give  it  up  to  me.  The  Countess,  who  is  of 
that  sweet,  condescending  amiability  which  is  particularly  unpleasant  to 
me,  said  she  had  understood  I  should  bring  my  instrument  with  me. 
How  the  matter  will  be  arranged  I  do  not  yet  know.  I  expect  I  shall 
have  to  hire  one  from  the  neighbourhood :  there  must  be  some  to  be  had. 

Dinner  yesterday  was  at  2  o'clock,  and  tea  at  8  o'clock ;  the  hours, 
and  the  quality  of  the  food,  were  both  satisfactory  to  me.  The  Countess 
had  a  visit  from  some  relations  ...  an  old  cousin,  with  whom  I  had 
a  good  deal  of  conversation,  who  had  an  opportunity  of  judging  of  my 
attainments,  and  who  was  very  pleasant  to  me,  who  had  known  Chopin 
intimately,  and  had  seen  much  in  Paris.  Also  a  brother  of  the  Countess, 
still  pretty  young,  looking  awfully  bored :  and  then  there  was  his  wife, 
a  young  lady,  not  pretty,  but  not  unamiable-looking,  who  had  such 
a  good  memory  that  she  recollected  having  seen  me  three  or  four  years 
ago  at  a  party  given  by  a  Polish  lady  in  the  Halbegasse. 

After  dinner  I  was  weak  enough  to  accede  to  the  request  to  play 
something,  which  I  did  in  the  cold  salon,  with  frozen  fingers.  The  lady 
of  the  house  accompanied  me  with  conversation;  the  men — the  old 
cousin  especially — were  polite  and  admired  my  playing.  After  tea  I 
repaired,  uninvited,  to  a  drawing-room  that  had  been  heated,  to  make 
conversation,  and  to  be  freer  and  more  unconstrained. 

I  am  waiting,  for  everything  that  requires  alteration,  the  arrival  of 
the  Count :  anything  I  have  to  say  to  the  Countess  I  do  through  the 
stepdaughters. 

How  are  you?  Did  you  get  comfortably  homel  What  a  tough 
hide  man  has  in  regard  to  his  troubles  !  And  how  much  it  takes  really 
to  destroy  the  machine  ! 

How  did  things  go  on  Sunday  1  Do  tell  me  about  the  dinner  at  the 
Kamieiiskis.  Or,  if  you  would  rather,  not  a  word  :  or  else,  just  as  much 
as  you  like. 

I  am  at  the  moment  not  disposed  to  write  to  anybody  else  but  you. 
But  perhaps  later  on  I  shall  beg  you  to  pass  my  letters  round  now  and  then. 

Have  you  got  a  little  accustomed  to  your  new  house  1    And  how  are 

o 


210  HANS   VON  BULOW. 

you  off  for  servants  ?  Has  the  Csesar-music  been  brought  back  ?  I  do 
uncommonly  wish  to  hear  of  a  second  performance,  so  that  the  gentle- 
men of  the  orchestra  may  play  something  less  barbarous. 

Please  remember  me  most  kindly  to  Fraulein  Draseke.*  How  I 
wish  I  could  have  had  a  chat  with  her  yesterday  evening ! 

Now  farewell,  dearest  mother,  and  do  let  me  hear  from  you  as  soon 
as  possible. 

My  "colleague"  assures  me  that  the  postal  arrangements  are  very 
regular  and  dependable.  Let's  hope  so.  Have  the  other  Polish  ladies 
been  to  see  you  ? 

TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Chocieszewicb,  19th  October  1854. 

Dearest  Mother, 

Yesterday  afternoon,  just  as  I  had  given  my  nineteenth 
piano  lesson,  I  received  your  letter.  Thank  you  very  much  for  it,  as 
well  as  for  all  the  things  I  wanted.  I  am  answering  you  by  return  of 
post,  because,  before  my  letter  arrives  in  Dresden,  much  time  will  have 
elapsed.  For  in  the  afternoons  a  groom  rides  with  the  post-bag  to 
Krbben,  whence  he  brings  back  at  night  any  letters  that  have  arrived  for 
us.  The  post  does  not  go  out  from  Kroben  to  Rawicz  till  the  next  day,  so 
that  a  letter  cannot  reach  its  destination  under  three  to  four  days.  Of 
course  the  delay  is  far  less  in  letters  coming  to  us  here. 

You  have  really  sent  me  too  much  in  sending  three  thalers,  for  here 
one  has  no  use  for  a  purse  of  any  kind  .  .  .  the  only  **  silver  sound  "  is 
**  Music."  This  is  really  a  comfort,  which  you  would  especially  enjoy. 
For  me  it  has  the  special  charm  of  novelty. 

The  only  expenditure  I  have  had  as  yet  was  buying  a  Polish 
grammar,  which  the  Count's  secretary,  Herr  Baranowski,  a  very  pleasant 
man  in  his  own  style  and  according  to  the  limited  circle  of  his  mind, 
procured  for  me.  I  leave  the  exercise  of  local  benevolence  towards  the 
countless  calls  of  a  begging  nation  to  the  highest  bidder,  the  lord  of  over 
20,000  acres,  the  proprietor  of  an  estate  which  is  now  a  bargain  at  a 
million,  the  enviable  man  who  can  bear  with  equanimity  the  enormous 
loss  of  20,000  to  30,000  reichsthaler  (he  says  40,000)  which  the  inunda- 
tion caused  him. 

I  shall  also  have  expenses  for  tailor's  repairs,  for  shaving,  and, 
eventually,  for  bootmaker. 

The  Count  has  now  brought  a  little  order  into  things,  and  behaves 
(until  further  notice,  low  be  it  spoken)  very  well.     I  am  now  well  served 

*  Daughter  of  the  bishop,  and  aunt  of  the  composer  Driiseke ;  a  very  active- 
minded  and  literary  lady,  who  made  a  metrical  translation  of  Byron. 


DRESDEN — CHOCIESZE  WICE — BERLIN.  211 

by  a  "  compatriot,"  a  Vandal  brought  from  Dresden,  who  does  not 
speak  Saxon,  and  is  quite  exemplarily  methodical.  A  wardrobe  has 
been  made  for  me  by  the  joiner.  As  soon  as  the  Count  has  read  the 
papers  he  sends  them  straight  to  me  .  ,  .  the  Independence  and 
Charivari ;  of  German  ones  there  is  unfortunately  only  the  Schlesische 
Zeitung,  but  on  Tuesdays  Kladderadatsch.  He  has  also  begged  me  to 
give  singing  lessons — four  hours  a  week — this  of  course  he  will  pay 
for  extra  .  .  .  but  at  present,  in  spite  of  the  most  sedulous  sleeping  and 
feeding,  I  have  been  so  done  up  by  my  schoolmaster  duties  that  I  have 
not  been  able  to  make  up  my  mind  to  agree  to  it. 

I  must  briefly  give  you  a  sketch  of  the  uniform  course  of  my  daily  life. 
As  I  always  go  to  bed  an  hour  before  midnight,  and  sometimes  a  couple 
of  hours,  I  wake  and  get  up,  as  a  rule,  not  later  than  7  o'clock.  From 
9  to  11  I  have  to  give  two  "music  "  lessons,  and  to  instil  into  my  pupils 
Czerny's  Studies,  Dbhler's  Tarantelle  and  Willmer's  *  Schwalben  Etude.' 
That  is  a  tiring  "  robota  "  (labour),  a  torture  analogous  to  the  national 
punishment  in  Persia,  for  the  wrong  notes  drip  into  my  ears  as  con- 
stantly as  the  drops  of  water  on  the  skull  of  a  Persian  criminal.  The 
middle  "Countess,"  I  must  say,  takes  much  more  pains  here  in  Chocies- 
zewice  than  in  Dresden,  and  shows  more  intelligence  and  energy  than 
Fraulein  Elisa,  whom  I  have  today  reproached  with  her  "  mollesse  slave  " 
(Slavonic  indolence).  She  has,  without  doubt,  the  most  decided  want 
of  talent.  Boundless  are  my  troubles  with  the  youngest,  thirteen  years 
old,  into  whom  I  am  drubbing  a  Quadrille  on  airs  from  '  Martha,'  for  a 
birthday  treat  for  her  Papa.  To  a  certain  extent  Fraulein  Marie  is  really 
the  most  sensible ;  she  openly  avows  that  she  has  no  vocation  for  piano- 
playing,  and,  indeed,  a  very  great  disinclination  for  it :  considering  her 
conviction  of  her  utter  want  of  talent,  and  in  spite  of  the  absurd  way  her 
parents  insist  on  her  learning,  she  is  comparatively  willing,  but  she  has 
no  ear,  no  sense  of  rhythm,  nor  of  melody. 

Cest  vraiment  une  corvee  (it  is  a  real  drudgery). 

From  11  to  12  I  take  a  walk  in  the  park  in  fine  weather,  which 
hitherto  has  not  failed  us,  or  else  I  go  to  my  writing-table,  and  have  a 
rest  by  reading  some  book  or  other — Berlioz'  '  Soirees  d'Orchestre,'  the 
first  volume  of  Gervinus'  *  Literaturgeschichte  des  deutschen  Mittelalters,' 
and  others  of  that  kind.  Except  to  you,  I  have  not  yet  managed  any 
correspondence.  From  12  to  2  I  practise  pretty  vigorously  on  the  new 
grand  piano  of  Rbnisch,  which  is  an  excellent  one.  At  2  o'clock  we 
dine,  very  well,  though  sometimes  rather  limited  in  quantity — on  Fridays 
"maigre," — and  then  have  a  chat  over  our  cofifee  in  the  Count's  room,  a 
few  useless  French  phrases  about  nothing  at  all.  I  then  go  out  again 
till  4  o'clock  to  warm  myself,  for  we  freeze  here  like  barbarians,  and  the 


212  HANS  VON   BtJLOW. 

Count  forbids  any  continuous  warming  of  the  rooms  as  injurious  to 
health  (in  which  he  is  perhaps  right) ;  but  it  seems  to  take  longer  with 
me  to  get  accustomed  to  the  physical  temperature  than  to  the  psychical. 
From  4  to  5  I  play  again  for  myself ;  from  5  to  6  lessons ;  from  6  to  7  I 
generally  "compose";  at  7  o'clock  is  supper  (hot),  and  then  tea,  but 
this  is  taken  in  a  most  uncomfortable  manner  at  a  long  table  in  a  cold, 
and  enormously  lofty,  salon.  After  that,  I  usually  accept  an  invitation 
from  the  Countess  to  have  a  little  music  and  conversation  in  the  music- 
room,  because  I  find  it  is  a  good  thing  to  play  before  puppets  when 
I  have  not  got  musical  men  ("a  ddfaut  d'hommes  musicaux,  mannequins 
vorzuspielen "),  for,  after  all,  the  majority  of  the  public  consists  of  the 
puppets.  But  about  half-past  eight,  when  I  have  regained  my  own  four 
walls,  I  am  pretty  well  "  done,"  and  am  no  good  for  anything  much 
except  reading  the  papers,  which,  in  the  absence  of  any  closer  personal 
interests  in  my  surroundings,  I  thoroughly  devour  with  the  voracious 
appetite  of  an  old,  spectacled  subscriber  of  Tante  Voss*  Up  to  the 
present  I  have  not  had  any  indigestion  from  it. 

I  have  had  an  old  tin-kettle  of  a  piano  in  my  room  since  Herr 
Baranowski  has  been  prevented  (for  a  long  time,  it  appears),  by  a  wound 
in  the  hand,  from  slaving  at  it.  It  just  does  for  composing,  as  it  has 
been  done  up  and  is  in  good  tune,  but  for  playing  it  is  absolutely  unfit. 

I  have  no  occasion  at  this  moment  to  complain  of  my  present  situa- 
tion. It  is  just  a  banishment,  a  punishment  for  the  once  "  Nihilist,"  that 
he  has  come  into  the  Paradise  of  a  complete  negation  of  all  interests. 
If  this  negation  would  extend  itself  also  to  my  frequent  head-  and  neck- 
ache  it  would  be  a  good  thing.  But  I  am  quite  certain  that  I  shall  not 
be  able  to  stand  it  long  without  a  break.  My  journey  to  Berlin,  towards 
the  10th  or  15th  November,  is  considered  here  as  a  settled  thing;  it  is 
in  every  respect  necessary  to  me.  I  am  now  working  at  my  instrument 
with  all  my  powers,  with  a  view  to  this  excursion.  I  will  then  give  a 
concert  in  Poaen  in  December,  or — several  (during  the  meeting  of  the 
diet) ;  I  am  sure,  then,  of  doing  a  good  business,  and  Count  M[ycielski] 
has  promised  me  his  best  assistance. 

At  the  beginning  of  next  year,  Breslau.  Whether  there  will  be 
anything  to  be  done  with  Hamburg  is  a  question.  First  Berlin :  but 
how  1     Of  this  more  anon. 

When  is  Johanna  Wagner's  friend t  going  to  Berlin? 

No,  I  must  not  let  myself  be  buried,  even  with  the  prospect  of  the 
most  glorious  resurrection  after  a  year's  grace  !     My  "  colleague,"  a  Herr 

*  Familiar  name  for  the  Vossische  Zeilung. 
t  IleleQe  Kamiedska, 


DRESDEN — CHOCIESZEWICE — BERLIN.  2l3 

Schneider,*  is  a  very  good  and,  as  such,  a  moderate  Saxon.  I  am  going 
to  study  English  with  him,  the  elements  of  which  he  already  knows. 
Kext  Sunday  we  are  going  a  mile  and  a  half  to  a  little  nest  of  a  place 
called  Kobylin.  His  post  here  is  altogether  of  a  very  inferior  nature  to 
mine,  because  he  does  not  speak  French. 

Please  forward  the  enclosed  note  to  Isa  as  soon  as  you  can.  On  the 
25th  some  strangers  (ladies)  are  expected  here  ;  a  Countess  Potocka  and 
her  daughters,  etc. 

I  sent  my  serious  and  absolute  (not  my  relative)  best  remembrances 
to  Fraulein  Draseke. 

Once  more,  best  thanks  for  your  letter,  and  please  write  to  me  very 
soon  and  fuUy.  Your  loneliness  is  nothing  in  comparison  with  mine, 
and  the  wretched  postal  connection  delays  our  correspondence  so. 

P.S. — I  strongly  recommend  to  Fraulein  Draseke  Bauer's  '  Russland 
und  das  Germanenthum.'  I  have  enjoyed  it  very  much — it  helped  me 
over  the  first  dreadful  days.  It  is  so  masterly  in  its  power  and  manliness, 
so  "  free,"  that  is,  written  also  with  such  freedom  from  party-spirit,  and 
so  utterly  different  from  what  either  of  you  would  imagine,  that  I  am 
right  in  recommending  it  to  you. 

TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Chocieszewicb,  bth  November  1854. 

Dearest  Mother, 

I  have  just  received  your  letter,  and,  according  to  my 
present  custom,  I  set  myself  the  same  evening  to  answer  it. 

From  Isidore  I  have  twice  had  news,  although  very  incomplete,  for 
she  has  sent  me  two  numbers  of  the  Gazette  musicale  by  book-post.  That 
is  a  very  practical,  cheap  kind  of  correspondence,  where  it  is  only  a 
question  of  giving  a  sign  that  one  is  alive ;  but,  after  my  two  last  letters, 
which  were  not  unbrotherly,  she  might  have  done  more  than  scribble  a 
mere  address.  In  my  last  letter  I  had  already  warmly  encouraged  her 
to  make  the  most  of  her  stay  in  Paris,  and  to  let  me  know  all  the  many 
things — even  if  it  concerned  merely  the  masses  of  houses — that  it  would 
interest  me  to  hear.  Twice  I  have  also  asked  whether  Mrs.  Joy  would 
like  me  to  send  her  a  list  of  music  for  playing  or  singing,  and  she  does 
not  answer  me  about  that  either.  If  I  have  a  spare  moment  tomorrow 
to  enclose  a  note  to  her,  and  to  beg  her  again  to  extract  some  sweets 
from  her  stay  in  Paris,  and  to  tell  her  explicitly  some  things  that  I 
remember  reading,  I  will  be  sure  to  do  it ;  if  not  tomorrow,  then  another 
time,  that  is,  of  course  very  soon. 

*  In  a  later  letter  Biilow  says  :  "  his  name  is  '  Schreiber,'  not  '  Schn*ider."' 


214  HANS  VON  BULOW. 

With  regard  to  the  music  for  which  I  asked  her,  it  is  the  Eomance 
'  La  chaine  anglaise '  for  Mile.  Kamienska,  whom  I  shall  very  soon  surprise 
with  an  '  Albumblatt '  of  Liszt's.  You  can  tell  her  about  it  beforehand ; 
that  does  not  matter.  Yesterday  I  received  a  letter  from  my  Pest  friend, 
Eugen  V.  Soupper,*  who  is  now  in  Weimar,  on  the  last  page  of  which 
Liszt  had  written  a  friendly  greeting,  and  promised  to  send  me  very  soon 
what  I  had  begged  for. 

Why  don't  you  write  me  a  word  about  the  '  Croivn  Diamonds '  ?  t  I 
don't  know  the  opera.  It  is  said  to  be  amusing — therefore  allowed.  I 
am  looking  forward  to  Thursday,  for  then  I  shall  hear  a  string  twanged 
once  more.  There  is  to  be  a  small  ball,  for  which  a  band  is  coming  from 
Kobylin  :  double-bass,  two  violins  and  a  flute. 

Just  fancy  how  modest  we  are  !  Early  this  morning  I  drove  in  a 
wretched  carriage  (an  open  one,  in  every  way  most  countrified  and 
primitive)  to  the  Jewish  village  of  Kobylin  with  Herr  Schreiber,  who  is 
not  a  bad  fellow  at  all,  and  not  without  a  grain  of  art.  In  the  coup^ 
with  us  sat  the  cook's  chief  kitchen-boy,  who  understands  no  German, 
and  with  whom  I  exchanged  a  few  words  of  Polish  jabber.  At  Kobylin 
we  went  to  the  Catholic  and  Protestant  churches,  and  stayed  a  while  for 
the  service.  Then  we  bought  ourselves  some  pen-knives  at  3  neugroschen, 
chocolate,  blue  ink,  etc.  Finally  we  went  to  the  confectioner's,  where 
we  read  the  French  and  German  papers,  which  we  had  taken  with  us  on 
purpose,  while  we  ate  cakes  and  tried  to  imagine  we  were  sitting  at 
Trepp's,  and  that  the  mud-bank  before  the  window  was  the  Schlossgasse, 
and  the  Polish  peasant-women  (as  a  rule  brutally  ugly)  the  beautiful  Polish 
ladies  one  sees  coming  out  of  the  Catholic  church  at  twelve  o'clock,  etc., 
etc.  Soon  after  that,  some  well-dressed  ladies  came  into  the  cake-shop, 
and  began  an  interesting  discussion  as  to  whether  pigs  might  be  fed  with 
diseased  potatoes.  A  Protestant  thought  they  might,  a  Catholic  thought 
not ;  a  Jewess,  who  perhaps,  in  the  words  "  diseased  potatoes,"  thought 
they  were  alluding  to  her,  ran  away. 

The  return  ride  was  interesting.  Our  carriage  was  packed  choke-full 
with  all  sorts  of  purchases,  when,  at  a  farm  hard  by,  they  packed  in  also 
a  dead  pig — as  a  cushion  to  lean  against  and  to  sit  upon.  We  were 
tremendously  tickled,  and  laughed  till  the  tears  ran  down  our  cheeks.  At 
dinner  I  entertained  them  with  a  lively  description  of  what  had  happened  : 
'  Nous  avions  une  soci^te  charmante ;  d'abord  pour  compagnon  de  voyage 
un  gar^on  cuisinier,  avec  lequel  nous  avons  parli^  polonais — puis  le  cadavre 
d'un  cochon,  avec  lequel  nous  n'avons  pas  fait  la  conversation  polonaise — 

*  A  concert  singer,  and  countryman  of  Liszt's, 
t  Opera  by  Auber. 


DRESDEN — CHOCIESZEWICE — BERLIN.  215 

mais  qui  nous  a  servi  de  sopha,'  etc.  The  Count  thought  that,  in  the 
excessive  cold,  that  must  have  kept  us  nice  and  warm.  I  began  to  laugh 
over  again ;  c'est  champetre  !  c'est  champetre  ! 

Tlie  Count  has  not  yet  repaid  me  the  money  for  my  journey,  conse- 
quently I  have  not  been  able  to  go  to  '  Lohengrin '  at  Breslau.  I  did 
not  want  to  ask  him  for  it  now  ;  the  right  moment  will  come  of  itself. 
But,  in  case  of  a  longer  stay  here  (of  course  including  the  journey  to 
Berlin),  I  do  require  a  few  more  thalers,  and  should  be  very  grateful  if 
you  could  send  them  as  soon  as  possible — registered. 

The  Kamienskis — the  plural  is  sTcie  for  ladies — are  mad ;  first  they  work 
themselves  up,  then  you,  and  so  forth.  First  I  must  try  the  metropolis, 
then  the  provincial  towns.     The  other  way  about  would  be  nonsense. 

Countess  Mycielska  (! !  !)  and  the  Count  ski  have  something  else  to 
do  than  to  lend  me  a  helping  hand  in  my  concerts.  Their  guests  of  the 
time  being  cannot  and  will  not  by  any  means  do  anything  for  a  pianist 
who  is  unknown  to  them,  and  who,  further,  neither  can  nor  will  ask  for 
their  protection.  Prince  Sutkowski  comes  on  the  9th  November — 
perhaps  he  may  chance  to  interest  himself  somewhat  more  for  me, 
though  I  don't  really  think  he  will.  What  can  I  begin — and  that  is  the 
principal  thing — without  funds,  without  the  necessary  capital  in  hand, 
or  at  any  rate  at  my  disposal,  in  case  of  extremity,  for  a  first  concert  in 
Berlin  ?  If  Madame  Schumann  takes  the  concert-public,  with  Joachim, 
in  Berlin  in  November,  it  is  all  over  with  a  poor,  forsaken  beggar  like 
me.  And  I  endure  it  here  too.  It  is  a  sad,  empty  life ;  and  yet  this 
supreme  indifference,  in  which  irony  almost  gives  place  to  a  certain 
bonhommie  (bon-enfantie),  and  which  I  breathe  in  all  my  surroundings 
here,  has  its  advantages ;  one  learns  to  moderate  and  restrain  one's  self 
completely,  and  to  value  the  charm  of  an  ordinary  vegetable  existence. 
I  am  content,  in  the  evening,  when  I  have  seen  my  "hostess"  or 
"  principal "  once  in  the  day,  or  even  less,  for  she  irritates  my  nerves  in 
conversation  and  in  her  whole  being,  and  thus  lends  a  flavour  of  virtu- 
ousness  to  my  frequent  attempts  to  be  amiable  :  I  am  content  when  my 
pupils  have  done  pretty  badly  and  pretty  trivially  (in  "  expression  ")  on 
the  poor  piano  :  am  content  when  Mile.  B.,  "  qui  est  bete  comme  une  oie," 
as  the  Count  sympathetically  agrees  with  me  in  thinking,  and  Herr  v. 
Baranowski  have  talked  modei'ate  rubbish  at  table  over  the  political 
questions  of  the  day.  That  I  am  happy  when  I  have  eaten  well,  not 
been  too  much  frozen,  have  slept  well — that  goes  without  saying.  Last 
night  I  had  the  adventurous  enjoyment  of  a  mouse-chase.  The  morning 
sun  showed  my  raven  *  Hermann  the  glorious  resiilt  of  the  fallen  prey. 

*  Refers  to  Elias,  whom  the  ravens  fed. 


216  HANS  VON   BULOW. 

The  Count  is  niggardly,  and  talks  big,  but  in  the  main  he  is  a  man 
of  a  great  deal  of  hon  sens,  and  of  proportionate,  very  proportionate 
humanity ;  and,  as  I  said,  of  very  sound  views ;  in  politics,  for  instance. 
In  his  outer  man  he  has  that  generous-sentient  pli  (wrinkle)  which 
amused  me  in  Lemaistre,  like  the  head  of  a  confiding  cat — I  can't  put  it 
in  any  other  way :  that  element  of  animal-intelligence  which,  in  its 
natural  truth,  is  so  infinitely  above  a  subtle-human  stupidity.  He 
venerates  Kladderadatsch  with  understanding  and  enthusiasm,  and  it 
warms  my  heart  to  hear  him  hold  forth  about  it.  He  lets  himself  be 
carried  away  by  the  spirit  of  it,  and  that  is  a  great  deal ;  if  I  have  a  joke 
he  is  usually  my  public,  and  just  of  the  kind  I  like — not  outwardly 
admiring,  but  visibly  and  inwardly  consuming  it. 

Where  on  earth  am  I  wandering? 

Madame  Laussot's  book,  '  Comedies  par  Alfred  de  Musset,'  is  read 
through  and  through,  and  has  given  me  many  pleasant  moments.  My 
greetings  to  the  donor.  Ditto  to  Fraulein  Draseke ;  I  will  write  her  a 
Funeral  March  for  Kornilofi'.  How  could  I  go  now  to  Warsaw  ?  What 
chateaux  en  Espagne,  or  rather,  Poland !     It  is  all  one. 

Can  you  send  me  '  Kichard  II. '  in  German  ?  We  have  begun  to  read 
it  in  English,  and  it  is  difficult. 

Do,  for  Heaven's  sake,  read  something  !  at  least  the  Revues,  the 
Deutsches  Museum,  the  Gh'enzboten  1  What  does  the  supplement  to  the 
Augshurger  give  ?  Please  keep  me  a  little  au  fait  of  this,  dear  Mamma  ! 
— Lipinski  ?  .  .  .  The  Czartoryska*  is  giving  a  concert  for  the  sufferers 
from  the  inundation  very  shortly ;  it  is  already  announced.  I  will,  if 
possible,  pluck  up  my  courage  to  write  letters  to  Berlin  tomorrow. 

Farewell,  and  shorten  the  time  for  yourself  by  writing  to  me  often ! 


15^/i  November. 

Life  here  is,  in  the  main,  horribly  uncomfortable  and  uninteresting. 
One  vegetates.  Yet  so  great  is  the  power  of  habit  that,  frankly,  I  don't 
feel  inclined  to  go  to  Berlin,  and  would  much  rather  keep  on  staying 
here,  where  the  days  go  on  unwinding  themselves  with  their  accustomed 
functions,  like  a  ball  of  thread.      On  Sunday  it  is  the  name-day  of 

•  "  Madame  la  Princesse  Czartoryska,  musicienne  parfaite  par  le  savoir  et  par 
le  gout,  distinguee,  pianiste  en  outre  .  .  .  Apres  une  quintette  de  Hummel,  qu'elle 
venait  d'executer  avec  uue  superiorite  magistrale,  quelqu'un  me  dit : 

'  Decidement  il  u'y  a  plus  d'amateurs  !'  .  .  .  'Oh  ' — repondis-je,  '  en  chercliaut 
bien — vous  en  trouverez  peut-etre — meme  parmi  les  artistes.  Mais  en  tout  cas  la 
Princesse  est  une  exception.'" — Berlioz  "Mdmoires"  :  vol.  II.  page  198. 


DRESDEN — CHOCIESZEWICE — BERLIN.  217 

Fraulein  Elinka  :  I  shall  present  her  with  the  dedication  of  a  Mazurka, 
which,  with  a  still  unfinished  Notturno,  I  am  going  to  offer  to  Schott. 

The  Count  went,  the  day  before  yesterday,  with  a  few  guests  who  are 
still  here,  to  pay  a  visit  to  the  neighbouring  estate  of  Herr  v.  Stablewski ; 
they  came  back  at  mid-day  today,  but  were  expected  yesterday.  On  that 
account  we  dined  yesterday  at  6,  and  today  at  4  o'clock.  This  irregular 
way  of  living  does  not  suit  me  at  all.  If  one  cannot  command  according 
to  one's  own  humour,  then  there  ought  at  least  to  be  a  hard  and  fast  rule 
as  regards  the  day's  arrangements,  from  which  there  is  no  deviation. 

Do  you  still  read  Kladderadatsch  ?  It  has  been  uninterruptedly 
capital,  especially  the  last  double  number. 

Write  soon,  dear  mother,  and  thank  you  once  more  for  all  your  care 
and  sympathy.  I  hope,  in  my  next  letter,  to  be  able  to  tell  you  more 
definitely  about  my  journey,  etc. 

Your  grateful  son 
^-^  Hans. 


TO  HIS  SISTER. 

Chooibszewicb,  6th  November  1854. 

Isidore  !  Isa  !  Isidore  ! 

It  is  really  unpardonable  and  unwarrantable  of  you  that 
you  have  never  deemed  me  worthy  of  a  line  in  reply  to  my  repeated 
requests.  "What  lots  of  things  you  could  write  to  me  from  Paris  which 
would,  which  must,  especially  interest  me,  as  a  man  not  knowing  Paris, 
and  as  Hans  von  Billow !  Even  if  you  only  told  me  of  the  rough 
impression  made  upon  you  by  the  masses  of  houses — I  should  say,  of 
the  impression  made  upon  you  by  the  high,  rough  masses  of  houses, 
which  of  themselves  have  such  manifold  historical  interest,  that  would 
at  least  be  something,  and  I  should  indeed  be  more  grateful  to  you  for 
that  than  for  sending  me  a  couple  of  numbers  of  one  of  the  most  stupid 
musical  papers,  such  as  has  not  its  equal  in  all  Germany.  Not  merely  so 
awfully  stupid,  but  so  insipidly  dult,  so  silly  were  the  contents  of  this 
paper  present,  on  which  the  only  interesting  thing  was  the  address  in 
your  handwriting.  Just  consider  what  a  piece  of  luck  you  are  having, 
and  how  many  of  your  companions — quite  apart  from  me,  for  instance, 
would  envy  you  for  living  in  the  city  which  is  the  centre,  not  merely  of 
the  civilised,  but  also  of  the  uncivilised,  world.  And  even  if  you  went 
to  no  theatre,  and  saw  no  museum,  what  an  immense  deal  there  is  still 
left  in  the  way  of  streets,  palaces,  gardens,  squares,  and  so  forth.  From 
your  very  window,  what  an  interesting  panorama  —  the  faces  of  the 


218  HANS  VON  BULOW. 

passers  by,  the  toilettes  of   the  ladies  and   gentlemen — I  am  speaking 
quite  seriously  :  even  that  would  interest  me  ! 

I  have  several  times  asked  you  direct,  and  through  Mamma,  for  an 
answer  to  my  question,  whether  Mrs.  Joy  would  like  a  list  of  music  from 
me,  either  for  playing  or  singing,  and  you  have  not  yet  answered  me,  so 
that  it  has  been  impossible  for  me  to  send  it !  Is  that  French  Romance, 
of  which  I  wrote  to  you,  really  not  to  be  had  at  Brandus',  Boulevard  des 
Italieus  ?  Who  knows  when  you  will  see  Paris  again !  So  open  your 
eyes  and  ears  wide  !  Read,  look  and  listen !  It  is  indeed  well  worth 
the  trouble.     Keep  a  diary,  and  write  me  a  decent  letter  for  once  ! 

You  see  today  I  am  very  cross  and  churlish,  but  for  a  month  past  I 
have  been  bored  out  of  my  life,  and  it  is  allowable  to  want  a  little 
relaxation,  after  having  given  70  piano  lessons. 

Don't  take  my  ill-humour  amiss,  and  let  me  give  you  a  little  advice. 

No  doubt  you  have  already  found  your  way  to  Versailles  !  to  see  the 
museum  there :  Horace  Vernet's  pictures  of  the  times  of  Napoleon 
(battle  of  Jena  and  others) ;  the  deeds  of  the  French  army  in  Algiers 
by — I  can't  remember  whom;  the  portraits  of  Robespierre,  Mirabeau, 
also  Voltaire  :  these  are  all  well  worth  seeing. 

Foyatier's  statue  of  Spartacus  in  the  garden  of  the  Tuileries  must  be 
very  beautiful :  have  you  seen  it  ?  Have  you  been  to  the  Louvre  1  Be 
sure  to  see  Murillo's  Madonna  supported  by  angels ;  portrait  of  Philip  II. ; 
the  child  drawing  water  with  St.  Augustine ;  Titian's  Christ ;  Raphael's 
Madonna;  Christ  seizing  St.  John  by  the  head;  Caravaggio's  fortune- 
telling  gipsy. 

Gros :  Napoleon  in  the  fever-hospital  at  Jaffa.        \ 
Gericault :  Raft  with  rescued  shipwrecked  people.  j>      Modern. 
David :  Portraits.  ) 

Have   you  been   to   the    Gobelin  factory  —  the   celebrated   tapestry 
pictures  1 

The  sculpture  portion  of  the  Louvre  must  also  contain  some 
magnificent  things  :  the  Borghese  gladiator ;  Melpomene,  etc. 

Have  you  been  to  the  Invalides?  Have  you  seen  the  Emperor's 
grave  1 

Have  you  not  yet  been  once  to  the  theatre  1  And  if  so,  which  ? 
Do  write  to  me  about  it.  What  papers  are  you  reading?  Is  the 
Figaro  amusing  1 

How  is  Berlioz  looking  ?     Is  he  contented  ? 

Have  you  paid  a  visit  to  Jouvin,  "  gantier"  (1  rue  Rougemout),  to 
Guerlain,  "  parfumeur"  (13  rue  de  la  Paix),  to  Julien,  '■^patissier" 
(Boulevard  des  Italiens),  '■^Pate-Paris,  gateau  du  soleil"  .  .  .?  Just 
look  about  you  and  "dis-7)ioi  de  leurs  nouvelles."    The  best  guide  to 


DRESDEN — CHOCIESZEWICE — BERLIN.  219 

Paris  is  ^'Les  quartiers  de  Paris,  par  St.  Fargeau."  That  you  ought  to 
get  for  yourself,  and  in  a  year's  time  I'll  buy  it  from  you. 

I  believe  the  following  are  very  amusing,  and  help  one  to  a  knowledge 
of  Parisian  life:  "Les  petits-Paris " ;  and,  in  separate  little  brochures, 
"  Paris  viveur  ;  Paris  restaurant ;  PaiHs  bohcme ;  Paris  boursier,  etc.  / 
which  are  to  be  got  at  Tarido's,  the  publisher,  Galerie  de  I'Od^on. 

Don't  you  subscribe  to  any  reading-library  1  How  do  you  actually 
spend  your  days  1  Describe  to  me  how  you  live,  and  let  me  have  a  good 
long  letter  from  you  soon ;  or  else  I  shall  soon  lose  patience  also,  and 
shall  not  send  you  any  more  messages.  You  have  neglected  me  too 
shamefully.  Mind  you  thoroughly  enjoy  the  beautiful  city  where  the 
most  wretched  beggar  can  get  more  amusement  than  a  poor  devil  of  a 
fellow  like  me  here  in  this  desert  country  of  Posen.  Adieu  meanwhile, 
dear  but  most  unsisterly  sister  ! 


Farewell ! 

As  ever. 


Thy  faithful  brother. 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Chocieszewicb  [Middle  of  November  1854.] 

Dearest  Mother, 

Many  thanks  for  your  dear  letters  and  their  accompani- 
ments, the  parcel  of  linen  and  cigars  as  well  as  the  30  thalers,  which  I 
have  safely  received. 

Since  the  day  before  yesterday  we  have  winter,  as  winterly  as 
possible;  showers  of  snow,  cold  and  tempest.  It  will  be  difficult  to 
get  away  from  here  on  the  journey  to  Berlin.  I  don't  believe  there  is 
such  a  thing  as  a  close  carriage  in  the  Count's  coach-house.  I  shall 
therefore  have  to  wait  for  a  fine  day,  even  though  it  only  takes  about 
two  hours  with  the  Count's  horses  to  drive  to  the  little  town  of  Gostyn, 
where  we  take  the  Post  via  Lissa  to  Glogau,  whence  the  journey  by  rail 
to  Berlin  is  of  course  quite  an  easy  matter. 

My  fingers  are  still  so  frozen  that  the  writing  does  not  get  on  at  all, 
or  rather  does  not  progress  towards  resigning  gloriously  the  remains 
of  my  Saxon  nationality.  Since  yesterday,  Sunday,  evening  I  have 
been  re-installed  in  my  former  large  room,  which  on  "Wednesday  evening 
I  was  obliged  to  exchange  for  a  little  chamber  in  the  adjoining  building, 
as  the  housing  of  an  unexpectedly  large  number  of  birthday  guests 
required  all  the  accommodation  of  the  castle.  I  was  not  in  a  very 
comfortable  frame  of  mind  those  four  days.     The  endless  confusion  in 


220  HANS  VON   BULOW. 

the  whole  house,  the  unpunctuality  (once  we  dined  at  5,  another  time  at 
6,  the  third  day  at  half-past  six),  and  in  addition  being  obliged  to  walk 
50  paces  of  the  most  disgusting  road  in  thin  elegant  dress  at  different 
times  of  day  and  night  in  order  to  slip  into  the  castle, — all  this  had  so 
pulled  me  down,  that  soon  after  sitting  down  to  table  on  Saturday  I  was 
attacked  by  such  an  excessively  severe  sick  headache  and  feeling  of 
faintness  that  there  was  nothing  for  it  but  to  go  to  bed  at  once.  I  did 
not  get  up  till  noon  yesterday,  and  felt  still  better  in  the  afternoon. 

I  could  not  find  any  time  to  go  on  with  my  letter  yesterday.  It  was 
very  uncomfortable  in  my  room  last  night,  what  with  a  smoky  lamp, 
insufficient  fire  and  so  forth.  I  spent  the  whole  day  at  the  piano.  I 
had  been  obliged  to  exist  without  one  for  four  days.  So  yesterday  I 
began  to  practise  again,  and  in  a  furious  manner  did  three  hours  without 
stopping.  After  dinner  I  went  to  the  billiard-room  for  the  first  time, 
and  gave  myself  up  to  a  game  which  Herr  Schreiber  was  so  kind  as  to 
teach  me,  and  found  the  motion  a  judicious  contrast  to  pianoforte-playing. 
Four  hours  of  teaching,  three  of  furious  practice,  two  of  billiards,  a  little 
drawing-room  conversation  and  strumming  in  the  evening — so  the  day 
slips  away,  without  any  consciousness  at  night  of  anything  achieved. 

The  company  which  had  come  hither  for  "  St.  Theodore's  day "  * 
was,  as  I  said  before,  very  numerous,  but  it  consisted  chiefly  of  relations, 
some  of  them  being  named  Mycielski.  Prince  Sutkowski  and  his  wife, 
nee  Mycielska,  niece  of  Count  Theodor;  the  Prince's  brother-in-law 
Count  Wodzicki,  who,  like  his  wife  {nee  Sutkowska)  has  something  much 
more  distinguished  about  him  than  the  Prince ;  Count  Plater ;  Herr  von 
Stablewski,  etc.  :  in  short  from  40  to  50  people, — men,  women,  and 
children  too.  .  .  . 

Again  I  have  let  a  day  pass  without  finishing  and  despatching  this  letter. 
But,  in  the  first  place  postal  communication  was  interrupted  today,  and 
then  I  could  not  bear  to  banish  myself  to  the  writing-table.  Ever  since 
I  have  known  that  I  should  soon  be  going  to  Berlin,  and  that  a  great 
and  fundamental  question  would  have  to  be  settled  for  me  there,  I  have 
not  a  moment's  peace,  and  find  myself  dreaming  by  day  of  nothing  but 
concert-programmes,  and  all  sorts  of  trifles  appertaining  to  my  concert- 
and  evening-dress,  which  needs  thoroughly  renovating.  Having  been 
three  weeks  without  a  place  to  keep  my  things  in,  and  without  anyone 
to  mend  them  for  me,  my  clothes  have  got  into  rather  a  bad  state.  How 
all  this  bothers  my  head  ! 

For  the  rest,  I  must  tell  you  I  was  pretty  well  satisfied  with  myself 
at  the  piano  today.     It  is  certain  that  by  regular  good  practice  here  I 

*  The  Count's  name-day. 


DRESDEN — CHOCIESZEWICE — BERLIN.  221 

have  made  decided  progress.  My  probable  first  (Chamber)-concert-pro- 
gramme,  which  I  played  to  myself  today,  went  smoothly  all  through. 
1.  Prelude  (C  minor)  for  the  organ,  by  Bach  (transcribed  for  the  piano 
by  Liszt) ;  and  Beethoven's  32  Variations,  C  minor.  —  2.  Liszt's 
Patineurs. — -3.  Chopin's  Berceuse,  Etude,  and  Barcarole. — 4.  The  big 
Lucrezia-Fantasia  by  Liszt.  For  the  second  concert  I  should  have  again 
an  interesting  series  of  pieces  :  L  Bach's  Organ  Prelude  and  Fugue, 
A  minor  (transcribed  for  piano  by  Liszt). — 2.  Beethoven's  Sonata  in  F 
minor  or  A  major.  —  3.  Ballade  or  Scherzo  of  Chopin .  —  4,  The 
Eossignol-Paganini  Etude ;  a  Waltz  of  Liszt's. — 5.  Sonnambula ;  the 
second  Lucrezia  or  Lucia  or  the  Midsummer  Night's  Dream  by  Liszt. — 
For  the  third  I  should  have  no  difficulty  in  finding  novelties. 

For  the  theatre,  where  I  should  certainly  have  to  play  first  of  all,  I 
should  have  the  Beethoven  Concerto  and  the  three  approved  pieces  for 
pianoforte  and  orchestra  of  Liszt  to  bring  forward  as  show-pieces. 

I  do  not  think  Redern's  acquaintance  will  avail  me  much.  It  seems 
to  me  very  uncertain  whether  it  will  help  me  to  let  my  light  shine 
before  His  Majesty,  to  whom — if  it  came  to  that — I  should  have  to  play 
the  Russian  National  Anthem. 

I  will,  likewise,  not  play  for  nothing  at  the  opera-house,  because  at 
the  worst  one  must  be  prepared  for  further  concerts.  First  of  all  I  am 
now  going  to  write  and  ask  Schlesinger  when  Frau  Schumann  intends  to 
fix  her  soirees  in  conjunction  with  Joachim,  so  that  she  may  not  clash 
with  me,  and  that  I  may  not  be  at  a  loose  end  on  leaving  here,  spending 
unnecessary  money. 

Do  not  be  vexed  with  me  that  I  say  all  these  things  out  to  you  in 
my  letter  sans  f agon,  just  as  I  used  to  do  viv&  voce.  But  as  I  can't 
consent  to  keeping  a  regular  diary,  and  as  there  is  not  the  least  oppor- 
tunity to  be  communicative  to  anybody  in  this  confounded  castle,  you 
must  be  motherly,  and  kindly  allow  my  tongue,  which  is  incapable  of 
carrying  much,  to  send  part  of  its  luggage  by  the  pen. 

Where  shall  I  stop  in  Berlin  ?  I  forget  the  name  of  that  Hdtel  garni 
where  the  Tiecks'  Friederike  can  take  me  in. 

Liszt  wrote  to  me  the  day  before  yesterday,  a  letter  of  a  few  words, 
almost  as  good  as  nothing,  but  containing  a  very  elegant,  charming  little 
manuscript  for  Helene  Kamienska.  There  was  however  one  pretty  thing 
in  the  letter,  which  is  that  Liszt  wants  to  do  the  Caesar  Overture  at  one 
of  the  Stadthaus  concerts.  So  you  would  have  to  be  so  good  as  to  send 
the  score  and  orchestral  parts  to  Weimar.  You  have  probably  seen  Lipin- 
ski  ere  now,  and  heard  from  him  that  my  work  is  not  thought  worthy  of 
a  second  and  more  satisfactory  performance.  And  the  Caesar  is  also  prob- 
ably no  longer  in  the  repertoire.     But  when  the  opportunity  occurs  I  will 


222  HANS  VON  bOlow. 

just  let  the  Dresden  orchestra  know  that  we  are  quits.      Please  tell 
Lipinski  so. 

After  all  I  must  tell  you  what  my  pen  has  resisted  till  now,  that  on 
the  9th  and  10th  I  played  before  the  grand-ducal  Poledom,  and  that  my 
audience  treated  me  very  well.  They  listened  attentively  and  as  quiet  as 
mice,  and  gave  me  a  little  pleasure  in  return  by  the  manner  of  their 
applause.  The  most  marked  instance  of  it  was  that  they  said  openly,  and 
with  piena  voce,  that  my  talent  was  greater  than  that  of  their  country- 
men Wieniawski  and  that  special  favourite  of  the  Poles — Kontski  (who 
is  great  as  a  charlatan  and — also  in  technique).  They  all  showed  the 
utmost  politeness  to  me,  which  I  had,  sure  enough,  set  myself  systemati- 
cally to  draw  forth,  by  having,  on  the  previous  days,  when  guests  had 
already  arrived,  absented  myself  immediately  after  meals,  and  on  Wed- 
nesday had  even  distinguished  myself  by  not  appearing  at  all !  and  an 
extremely  conciliatory  visit  of  the  Count,  who  came  as  their  emissary,  I 
had  met  with  an  indefinite,  unexpressed  dissatisfaction.  And  in  the 
mornings  also,  when  the  guests  were  having  music  amongst  themselves, 
I  kept  away,  so  that  then,  when  I  did  appear,  they  had  double  egards 
for  me. 

TO   HIS   SISTER. 

Chooieszewioe,  19^/i  November  1854. 

Dear  Sister. 

To  set  you  an  example  I  heap  coals  of  fire  on  your  head, 
and  answer  your  long  letter  received  yesterday  without  further  delay. 
The  quickness  of  my  reply  must  atone  for  the  shortcomings  of  my  letter 
as  compared  with  yours.  I  have  already  told  you,  and  you  will  believe 
from  my  hasty  sketch  of  the  bare  framework  of  Polish  country  seclusion, 
that  here  in  Chocieszewice  there  is  no  news  to  give^  but  only  to 
receive. 

I  have  already  given  my  103rd  music-lesson,  and  smoked  the  103rd 
paper  cigarette  ; — I  have  fallen  so  low  that  to  kill  time  I  keep  count  of 
things  like  this.  But  a  week  ago  I  found  a  resource  of  which  I  had 
never  even  thought,  and  which  I  now  employ  with  ardour  several  hours 
a  day,  namely  billiards,  into  the  mysteries  of  which  Herr  Schreiber,  the 
drawing-master  and  my  fellow-sufi'erer,  has  initiated  me.  It  is  an  ex- 
tremely delightful  game  of  skill,  and  with  the  winter  fully  upon  us  since 
the  10th  of  November,  and  the  incessant  snowstorms,  it  is  a  healthy 
exercise  for  us  without  having  to  leave  the  room. 

It  will  be  settled  in  the  course  of  this  week  whether  and  when  I  go 
to  Berlin.     I  am  daily  expecting  letters  from  there  to  tell  me  whether  I 


DRESDEN — CHOCIESZEWICE — BERLIN.  223 

should  have  any  chance  there  and  should  not  encounter  too  great  com- 
petition. I  shall  not  set  out,  in  any  case,  for  a  fortnight ;  and  it  certainly 
would  not  do  to  bounce  in  in  the  Christmas-time.  I  should  much  like  to 
get  a  favourable  answer,  as  I  am  just  now  in  good  practice,  and  have  got 
Bach,  Beethoven,  Chopin  and  Liszt  well  at  my  finger-ends.  Be  sure 
answer  me  here  in  any  case  till  you  hear  further  from  me  about  Berlin. 
I  have  unfortunately  not  received  the  Journal  des  Debats,  which  interests 
me  far  more  than  the  musical  paper.  As  you  are  so  good  as  to  bestow 
such  things  as  these  on  me,  I  beg  you  will  send  me  every  article  of  Berlioz 
as  quickly  as  possible.  As  for  musical  papers,  please  look  at  the  sommaire 
(contents)  first,  and  then  decide  whether  you  think  they  will  interest  me. 
Send  me  also,  when  there  is  an  opportunity,  a  few  numbers  of  the  comic 
papers  Corsaire  and  Figaro.  They  take  Charivari  here,  but  it  has  gone 
down  very  much  and  become  monotonous. 

When  will  the  performance  of  Berlioz'  '  Trilogie  Sacrde  '  take  place  1 
What  is  the  name  of  the  concert  in  which  it  is  to  be  heard  ? 

You  are  mistaken  in  thinking  that  the  Princess's  letter  to  Liszt's 
daughters  is  not  so  good  an  introduction  as  a  letter  from  their  father. 
Quite  the  contrary,  and  for  this  reason.  The  children's  governess  (a 
Madame  Patersi,  I  believe)  was  the  governess  of  the  Princess  "Witt- 
genstein herself,  and  possesses  her  entire  confidence ;  has  indeed  been 
put  into  this  very  situation  by  her. 

Have  you  called  on  Liszt's  mother  ?  Do  pay  a  little  attention  to  the 
old  lady,  with  whom  you  can  talk  German  because  she  would  very  much 
like  to  be  settled  in  Austria.  Let  Liszt's  daughters  (Erlking's 
daughters?),  whom  I  beg  you  to  describe  most  accurately  to  me,  take 
you  to  see  her. 

Your  little  lecture  which  was  called  forth  by  my  wish  for  the 
'  Corde  sensible,'  has  amused  me  immensely.  Here  is  the  explanation 
of  the  riddle.  The  old  Frau  von  Kamieiiska  wished  to  let  her  daughter 
sing  this  Romance,  which  she  knows,  and  which  could  not  be  got  in 
Dresden,  and  she  begged  me  to  procure  this  horreur  for  her.  This  is 
why  I  want  you  to  send  the  wretched  thing  to  Mamma  in  Dresden. 

And  even  though  the  music  of  this  Romance  is  really  so  uncommonly 
common  and  trivial,  still  I  must  beg  you  to  send  another  copy  of  it  to 
me  immediately.  I  then  get  by  heart  this  little  afifair  of  one  of  my 
pupils,  whom  I  also  occasionally  "Schurigle"*  in  singing, — and  that 
will  then  give  much  pleasure  to  her  Papa  who  cares  only  for  that  sort  of 
music.     So  there  ! 

Here  is  a  list  of  music  for  Mrs.  Joy,  with  my  most  respectful  regards. 

*  Ad  allusion  to  Isidore's  early  singing-master,  named  Schurig. 


224  HANS  VON   BULOW. 

What  you  write  of  her  interests  me,  and  altliough  you  have  often  been 
enthusiastic  about  many  women,  this  liking,  I  know  not  why,  seems  to 
me  more  reasonable  and  likely  to  last. 

If  Paris  suits  your  health  so  well,  why  do  you  write  to  Mamma 
about  returning  ?  You  should  try  to  acquire  a  little  more  of  the  French 
ease  in  society  (how  often  have  I  insisted  on  this !),  and  to  find  out  the 
peculiarities,  I  mean  the  good  side  of  the  people,  and  bring  out  that  side. 
Madame  Berlioz  must  have  her  good  side  too. 

Will  you  go  tomorrow  straight  into  the  second  room  of  the  Louvre  and 
send  me  every  bit  of  print  that  you  think  worth  sending. — Say  all  that  is 
nice  to  Berlioz ;  ask  him  whether  I  shall  arrange  the  Overture  to  the 
'  Roman  Carnival '  for  four  hands  once  more — it  has  been  badly  done  by 
Pixis ;  and  say  I  shall  be  glad  if  he  will  employ  me  for  the  Overture  to 
the  *  Corsair,'  as  such  a  piece  of  work,  especially  here,  would  be  an 
amusement  to  me. 

Ask  him  also  how  much  my  first  concerts  in  Paris  would  be  likely 
to  cost  me,  where  I  ought  to  play  first,  etc.,  and  tell  me  everything 
exactly  as  he  has  said  it  to  you.  By  this  you  will  be  doing  me  a  great 
service  !     I  will  not  forget  the  commission  to  the  Arnims. 

Farewell  for  today,  beloved  sister;  be  very  sensible,  give  up  that 
hankering  after  impossibilities  which  don't  exist :  then  your  life  will  be 
easier  and  more  joyous. 


TO  FRANZ  LISZT. 

Chocikszewice,  2Qth  November  1854. 

My  very  dear  and  illustrious  Master, 

How  good  you  are  !  A  thousand  thanks 
for  this  little  chef-d'oeuvre  of  a  manuscript  which  you  have  granted 
in  response  to  my  indiscreet  request.  Frankly,  I  would  just  as  soon,  or 
rather,  I  would  prefer  to,  keep  it  for  myself  .  .  .  this  autograph,  which 
is  the  most  reallj'  autograph,  since  every  note  bears  the  characteristic 
imprint  of  the  style  of  your  last  period.  It  has  such  an  exquisite 
delicacy,  such  a  subtle  grace !  But  ...  as  I  asked  for  it  for  Mile,  de 
Kamienska,  who  is  not  without  deserving  such  a  favour  as  an  encourage- 
ment to  her  good  intentions,  I  shall  have  the  honesty  to  send  it  to  her, 
with  the  delightful  tidings  that  you  will  go  and  see  her  during  your  next 
stay  at  Dresden.  She,  however,  already  enjoys  the  pleasure  of  knowing 
you  ;  for  she,  with  her  mother,  was  one  of  those  at  the  supper  at  the 
*  Hotel  de  Bavi^re,'  which  followed  the  first  performance  of  the  sublime 


DRESDEN — CHOCIESZEWICE — BEKLIN.  225 

horror,  of  the  poor  chef-d'oeuvre,  which  is  almost — unknown — under  the 
name  of  the  opera  '  Genovefa.' 

Excuse  me  if  I  refer  to  the  allusion  you  make,  in  your  very  kind 
letter,  to  a  second  autograph  which  you  thought  of  sending  hy  the  same 
opportunity ;  without  wishing  to  be  importunate  1  confess  that  I  tremble 
at  the  idea  that  it  may  have  been  lost ;  for  the  envelope  (addressed,  as 
it  seemed  to  me,  by  Hoplit's  hand)  only  contained  one,  '•  I'appassionato," 
in  F  sharp  major. 

The  prospect  of  a  performance  of  my  two  orchestral  pieces  under 
your  conducting  has  given  me,  and  still  gives  me,  many  happy  moments. 
I  have  written  to  Dresden  to  tell  them  to  send  you  the  new  score  of  the 
Overture  to  *  Caesar,'  together  with  the  orchestral  parts,  which  are  fairly 
correct,  with  the  exception  of  a  few  slight  errors  in  the  parts  for  the 
first  horn  and  the  second  clarinet.  You  did  receive  the  orchestral  parts 
of  the  Fantasia  some  time  ago,  did  you  not  1 

How  glad  I  should  be  to  hear  that  this  last  piece,  after  its  re- 
petition, seems  to  you  capable  of  producing  some  eflfect  on  the  hearer ! 
Would  it  interest  you  to  cast  your  eye  over  a  few  lines  that  "Wagner  has 
written  to  me  about  this  last  score  ?  If  so,  I  will  send  them  to  you.  In 
spite  of  much  indulgence  and  kindness,  his  last  word  is  not  as  favourable 
as  yours.  The  chief  thing  with  which  he  reproaches  me — of  making 
cacophonous  harmony — brought  forth,  however,  a  humble  protest  from 
me  against  his  accusation  that  I  had  departed  from  the  serious  side  of 
art  with  a  frivolous  indifference,  by  striking  home  at  "  Peliltim"*  to  the 
verge  of  eccentricity  (Ohr/eigen  fiir  feige  Ohren — a  box  on  the  ears  for 
the  ears  of  cowards).  I  do  think,  nevertheless,  that  he  is  right  in  finding 
much  fault  with  the  last  but  one  chord  of  the  seventh  (or  rather,  the 
triad  with  the  diminished  fifth :  f  $ — a — c,  for  the  d  jj  is  an  anticipation), 
on  which  the  crescendo  works  up  to  its  climax  on  the  final  harmony  of 
the  tonic.  Are  you  also  of  opinion  that  it  would  be  better  to  change 
this  harmony  into  that  which  I  employ  at  the  beginning  of  the  intro- 
duction 1 1 

Have  you  glanced  at  the  manuscript  of  the  duet  from  *  Tannhauser '  ? 
Will  you  be  so  kind  as  to  give  me  your  opinion  sometime,  without 
restriction  ? 

*  '•  PeliStim,"  an  Old  Testament  expression  for  "Philistine."  RafiF,  with  the 
intention  of  composing,  as  he  afterwards  did,  an  opera  '  Samson,'  to  which  he 
himself  wrote  the  text,  was  at  that  time  studying  the  Hebrew  language  ;  and  some 
expressions  from  that  language  were  employed  in  joke  by  the  young  artists. 

t  Probably  the  Symphonic  Poem,  which  was  afterwards  worked  up  and  published 
under  the  title  of  '  Nirwana,'  is  here  meant.  In  the  present  form  of  the  work  the 
passage  abore  referred  to  does  not  exist. 

P 


226  HANS   VON   BULOW. 

It  is  possible  that  I  may  yet  succumb  to  the  temptation  to  give  some 
concerts  in  Berlin  this  winter.  In  that  case  I  shall  go  there  not  later 
than  in  a  week  or  a  fortnight  from  now.  Johanna  Wagner  has  several 
times  offered  to  make  an  exception  in  favour  of  my  concerts,  by  singing 
at  them.  Would  you  allow  me  to  play  in  Berlin  your  '  Caprice  Turc,' 
supposing  that  I  have  the  advantage  of  an  orchestra  to  accompany  it ;  and, 
in  that  case,  might  I  ask  you  to  he  so  good  as  to  send  the  orchestral  parts 
to  Schlesinger  ?  I  myself  have  the  score,  as  well  as  that  of  the  Hungarian 
Rhapsody.  I  venture  to  submit  to  you  herewith  the  repertoire  from 
which  I  shall  draw.  I  have  only  chosen  pieces  that  I  know  perfectly 
well  by  heart. 

The  six  weeks  that  I  have  just  been  spending  in  an  exile  which 
would  be  intolerable  in  the  long  run,  have  at  least  been  of  advantage 
to  my  playing  of  piano  and — billiards.  The  business  of  schoolmaster 
reacts  so  strongly  on  my  nerves,  that  it  renders  me  incapable  of  any 
serious  work.  When  I  am  a  little  more  inured  to  it  by  habit  I  hope  it  will 
be  different.  I  have  just  given  my  104th  lesson,  and  I  assure  you  that, 
with  my  nature  of  a  great  pedant  (great  ordy  as  a  pedant),  it  is  a  perfectly 
servile  task  to  make  the  same  individuals  study,  for  four  weeks  without 
interruption,  pieces  suited  to  their  respective  capacities  —  such  as  the 
'  Hirondelles '  of  Willmers,  the  '  Tarantelle '  of  Dohler,  and  Strauss' 
Quadrille  from  '  Martha,'  the  favourite  piece  of  "  Papa." 

*^ Ilfaut  que  j'empeche  mon  cerveau  de  moisir,"  as  Macchiavelli  says; 
and  it  is  just  with  this  object  that  I  shall  make  excursions,  whether  for 
pleasure  or  business,  from  time  to  time  :  it  goes  without  saying,  that  I 
reckon  my  concert-tours  among  the  latter.  Country  life  in  winter  offers 
few  charms,  especially  in  that  part  of  the  Grand-Duchy  of  Posen  which 
is  as  little  favoured  by  nature  as  it  is  possible  to  imagine ;  a  land  uni- 
formly flat,  without  a  suspicion  of  a  hill  as  far  as  the  eye  can  reach. 
Although  the  castle  is  not  yet  emptied  of  its  more  or  less  passing  guests, 
yet  I  have  not  met  one  person  with  whom  I  should  have  been  tempted 
to  form  a  closer  acquaintance.  It  is  not,  however,  that  I  have  not  met 
there  some  very  comme  il  faut  people,  such,  for  instance,  as  Mr.  de 
Stablewski,  Count  Potworowski  and  his  family,  and  Count  de  Wodzicki, 
whose  wife  is  the  sister  of  Prince  Suikowski,  As  to  X.,  he  is  a  toady, 
something  between  a  butcher-boy  and  a  hairdresser's  assistant. 

I  am  encroaching  on  your  precious  moments  by  gossiping  in  a  way 
that  will  perhaps  prove  to  you  that  my  brain  has  already  begun  to  "vioisir." 

Thank  you  for  the  letter  which  introduced  my  sister  to  your  daughters. 
My  sister  writes  me  word  that  Berlioz'  '  Trilogie  Sacr(^e '  will  be  given  at 
a  coming  concert,  and  also  that,  at  the  opening  of  the  Exhibition,  an 
Overture  which  he  has  composed  expressly  for  it  will  be  played. 


DRESDEN — CHOCIESZEWICE— BERIJN.  227 

Will  you  let  me  have  news  of  you  again  very  soon,  dearest  Master, 
either  direct,  or  else  through  Hoplit,  who  does  not  condescend  to  corre- 
spond with  me  any  more :  I  am  so  anxious  to  hear  something  about 
*  Faust,'  and  a  thousand  other  objects  of  lesser  importance. 


.    TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Chocibszewicb,  25th  November  1854. 

Beloved  Mother, 

I  have  received  your  letters;  but,  as  is  usually  the  case 
with  the  wretched  postal  arrangements,  sometimes  4  and  indeed  6  days 
after  they  have  reached  Kroben. 

I  have  now  decided  to  set  out  this,  Saturday,  afternoon  via  Posen, 
where  Tyszkiewicz  is  stopping,  on  whom  I  shall  call  early  tomorrow 
morning,  as  he  could  perhaps  be  helpful  to  me  for  a  concert  to  be  given 
there  later  on. 

I  wrote  to  Johanna  Wagner  ten  days  ago,  also  to  Rellstab,  begging 
them  to  announce  my  coming. 

Schlesinger  and  Kisting,  whose  grand  piano  I  shall  use,  also  already 
know  of  my  coming. 

There  were  indeed  other  reasons  for  my  irresolution  and  delay  as 
regards  the  journey  to  Berlin  than  that  of  my  innate  procrastination, 
which  I  have  conquered.  I  am  always  in  extremes — at  one  time  tre- 
mendously courageous,  at  another  endlessly  apathetic  and  dejected.  And 
now  for  the  chief  thing — money  ! 

The  Count,  who  was  recently  elected  for  the  first  Chamber,  but  still 
awaits  the  King's  ratification  of  it,  will  likewise  come  to  Berlin  towards 
the  1st  of  December.  He  was  at  the  ball  the  day  before  yesterday,  and 
bought  two  horses  from  Suikowski  for  1000  reichsthaler.  The  same 
night  a  daughter  was  born,  and  now  we  cannot  either  play  the  piano  or 
play  at 'billiards  for  some  time  to  come,  and  it  is  extremely  horrid  in  this 
Polish  desert. 

On  Tuesday  I  had  to  pay  the  quarterly  tax  of  1  reichsthaler  20 
silbergroschen !  In  order  to  get  my  passport  I  had  to  send  an  express 
messenger  at  my  own  expense  to  Rawicz,  3  miles  distant.  These  are 
not  the  only  pleasures  I  have  had  of  that  kind.  For  the  last  week  I 
have  been  execrating  the  laundress,  who  always  keeps  me  waiting,  and 
has  now  given  me  the  slip.  Contemptible  rural  life !  Vile  country ! 
Worthless  existence ! 

Excuse  the  shocking  writing ;  I  did  not  want  to  write  till  I  was  quite 


228  HANS  VON  BULOW. 

certain  about  setting  off.  For  the  first  and  second  days  I  shall  have  to 
put  up  at  a  great  hotel  (Meinhardt's  Hotel).  I  assure  you  from  ex- 
perience this  expense  is  unavoidable ;  I  have  to  do  it.  After  as  short  a 
stay  as  possible  I  shall  try,  if  the  plan  of  giving  a  concert  seems  not  too 
risky,  to  find  a  cheap  lodging,  and  shall  first  inquire  of  [Tieck's] 
Friederike. 

If  I  can  neither  play  at  Court  nor  in  the  theatre  (where  I  can 
command  acoustic  arrangements  suitable  for  pianoforte-playing)  I  shall 
go  back  again  to  Chocieszewice  after  a  few  days,  so  as  not  to  waste 
money  unnecessarily.  I  hope  that  it  will  not  be  so  bad  as  Schlesinger 
most  discouragingly  describes.  Should  that  be  the  case — then  I  shall 
come  to  Dresden  at  Christmas  for  a  few  days,  to  recover  my  spirits, 

I  must  once  again  hear  some  music,  something  else  than  my  own 
everlasting  practising ! 

I  will  write  to  you  about  Berlin  as  soon  as  I  have  anything  to 
tell  you. 

I  am  curious  how  it  will  fare  with  me  this  time  !  Please  forgive  the 
wretched  hasty  scrawl,  in  writing  which  it  just  occurs  to  me  to  say  that 
Isidore  wrote  me  a  long  letter  a  week  ago,  to  which  I  replied  at  once. 

Farewell  meanwhile,  dear  good  mother. 

Many  thanks  for  the  credit  note  to  Ernst,  of  which,  alas,  I  shall  soon 
have  to  make  use. 

Liszt  has  long  heard  from  me  ! 

Long  in  both  senses. 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Berlin,  30^^  November  1854,     Evening. 

Beloved  Mother, 

I  ought,  as  the  proverb  says,  to  have  "  sought  an  honest 
living  "  in  the  country,  instead  of  going  out  into  the  world,  where  I  shall 
have  to  go  through  the  old  experiences  again. 

What  an  abominable  journey  have  I  had,  and  spent  two  nights  and 
a  day  and  a  half  over  it ! 

And,  if  I  had  not  given  the  postillions  and  guard  enormous  tips  on 
the  way  from  Lissa  to  Glogau,  I  should  have  had  the  pleasant  prospect 
of  spending  another  night  in  Glogau,  as  I  had  already  been  obliged  to 
do  in  that  little  Polish  hole  Gostyn. 

The  consequence  is  that  the  very  first  time  I  went  out,  by  the  help 
of  the  raw  stormy  snowy  air  of  the  Berlin  weather,  I  caught  a  shocking 


DRESDEN — CHOCIESZEWICE— BERLIN.  229 

influenza  cold,  which  has  been  getting  worse  ever  since  the  day  before 
yesterday.  I  think  it  has  come  to  a  climax  today,  and  I  hope  that  by 
tomorrow  I  may  venture  out  again  on  foot  to  make  some  of  my  countless 
calls. 

It  is  impossible  that,  among  pianists,  there  can  be  a  man  more 
worried  than  I  am. 

Frau  Schumann — at  present  unaccompanied  by  Joachim — arrives  on 
the  same  day  as  I.  She  gives  her  first  concert  on  the  4th  of  December. 
There  are  no  others  here  at  present  with  whom  I  could  clash. 

Hiilsen,  to  whom  I  sent  my  card  at  once,  requesting  to  know  when  I 
might  call  on  him,  showed  me  very  scant  courtesy.  He  is  strikingly  like 
the  picture  of  him  in  the  Tannhauser-caricature  in  K/adderadatsch, 
which  I  must  reproach  myself  with  not  having,  after  all,  told  him. 

Countess  Donhoff  has  not  yet  sent  a  word,  although  I  begged  her  to 
let  me  know  when  I  could  call  upon  her.  Count  Redern  has  received 
my  card  and  has  not  yet  answered  it.  That  is  more  excusable,  because 
the  Court  wedding-festivities  occupy  him  very  much. 

Friederike  Schwabhauser  (Wilhelmstrasse  43  b)  was  very  pleasantly 
surprised  by  news  of  you,  but  had  not,  alas,  a  single  room  at  liberty. 

I  have  looked  round  but  found  nothing.  I  am  stopping  for  the 
present  in  Meinhardt's  Hotel,  unter  den  Linden  No.  68,  3rd  etage, 
where  it  does  not  seem  to  be  so  immoderately  dear.  Especially  with  my 
present  indisposition  it  would  be  risky  to  move. 

Johanna  "Wagner,  who  had  replied,  giving  me  every  encouragement 
to  come  at  once,  was  recently  very  friendly,  repeated  all  her  amiable 
promises  to  me,  and  said  she  had  spoken  with  Meyerbeer  and  Count 
Redern  about  my  collaboration  in  the  Court  concert,  but  had  only 
received  evasive  replies.  Moreover  the  Court  was  largely  represented 
at  yesterday's  Court  concert  (in  the  white  hall),  and  the  performers  had 
the  pleasant  prospect  of  accompanying  the  card-playing  and  conversation 
with  music.  Countess  Kamienska  was  equally  polite,  and — naturally — 
grateful  for  Liszt's  interesting  manuscript. 

Among  my  acquaintances  here,  Kroll  and  others,  none  have  as  yet 
found  it  worth  the  trouble  to  come  and  return  my  call.  Herr  v.  Kolb 
alone  visits  me  frequently,  accompanies  me  on  my  walks,  and  takes  me  a 
little  out  of  my  very  depressing  loneliness. 

I  have  found  a  grand  piano  today  (by  Eck  in  Cologne — a  rich-toned 
instrument) ;  Kisting  had  nothing  in  stock.  I  have  already  called  on 
Rellstab,  Truhn,  Marx,  and  Frau  Zimmermann.  The  former  had 
yesterday  announced  my  arrival  by  a  mere  line.  In  his  own  personal 
opinions  he  is  moreover  a — bull-dog.  I  never  yet  heard  anyone  speak 
with  such  contempt  of  people  like  Spontini  and  Berlioz  (especially  the 


230  HANS  VON  BULOW. 

former)  as  he  did  today.  I  must  get  a  forbearing  drum  to  my  ear. 
After  I  had  racked  my  brains  for  several  days  as  to  whether  I  should  do 
better  and  be  wiser  to  go  back  again  to  Chocieszewice,  I  have  resolved  to 
give  no  heed  to  these  suicidal  emotions,  and  have  nerved  myself  for  a 
concert  next  Wednesday. 

Bote  and  Bock  will  manage  the  afifair. 

I  engage  Liebig's  orchestra  (which  Madame  Schumann  also  engages — 
and  which,  as  Rellstab  and  all  the  others  tell  me,  gives  almost  as  good 
Symphony-soirees  as  the  permanent  orchestra)  and  the  hall  of  the 
Academy  of  Singing.  I  am  obliged  to  pay  both  beforehand — 75  and 
60  thaler,  i.e.  125  thaler.  I  shall  have  two  Overtures  played,  and  shall 
myself  play  the  Beethoven  Concerto,  and  a  manuscript  of  Liszt's  with 
accompaniment.  Johanna  Wagner  has  faithfully  promised  me  to  sing 
twice.     The  total  expenses  will  amount  to  about  150  thalers. 

In  no  other  way  can  I  give  a  concert  in  Berlin,  that  is,  if  I  am  to 
make  my  debut  here  in  a  proper  manner,  not  unworthy  of  myself.  May 
I  now  borrow  the  100  thalers  from  Ernst,  as  you  kindly  told  me  to  do  ? 
Does  he  know  about  it  ? 

If  I  do  not  get  through,  I  shall  not  make  another  attempt.  To- 
morrow I  am  writing  to  Marpurg  (Conductor  of  the  theatre-orchestra  in 
Kbnigsberg)  and  to  Tyszkiewicz  in  Posen,  to  ask  whether  I  could  give  a 
concert  there,  with  the  arrangements  for  which  they  would  help  me. 

If  the  worst  comes  to  the  worst  I  shall  at  any  rate  have  enough  to 
get  back  to  Chocieszewice.  My  head  is  in  a  whirl,  as  if  driven  by  a 
wind-mill.  What  racing  about,  and  what  expenditure  of  time  and 
money,  are  before  me  ! 

But,  in  fine,  it  has  become  a  fixed  idea  with  me  to  risk  an  orchestral 
concert  in  Berlin, — to  let  myself  be  properly  heard  in  the  city  where, 
above  all  others,  I  should  have  to  seek  my  public. 

If  I  could  only  first  get  rid  of  this  terrible  cough  and  cold,  which 
are  really  dreadfully  bad  this  time. 

You  must  help  me  this  once  more  !  It  shall  be  the  last  time,  and 
then  I  will  patiently  do  my  self-worryings  round  about  in  Posen  or 
ailleurs,  I  am,  then,  so  unscrupulous  as  to  ask  for  the  100  thalers 
which  you  promised  me.  Either,  or !  But  to  go  away  from  here  again, 
intimidated,  would  be  too  inglorious.  At  least  one  must  make  the 
attempt !  Concerts  in  aid  of  the  sufferers  from  the  floods,  which  seemed 
the  only  way  to  get  anything  out  of  Berlin,  and  which  have  abounded 
up  to  the  present  time,  now  seem  to  be  falling  off. 

Please  send  to  me  here  the  Caesar  and  all  the  parts  belonging  to  it, 
etc.,  as  soon  as  possible.  As  I  have  to  pay  the  orchestra  I  shall  allow 
myself  that  amusement. 


DRESDEN — CHOCIESZEWICE — BERLIN.  SSl 

Stahr  is  here,  but  ill,  and  could  not  see  me  when  I  called  lately. 

Frau  Schumann  plays  this  week  in  Breslau.  I  have  not  yet  seen 
her ;  Bargiel  will  go  with  me  to  her.  He  seems  to  like  me  very  much, 
and  also  to  be  touched  by  my  real  interest  in  him. 

Write  to  me  at  once,  beloved  mother ;  forgive  my  bad  writing  and 
disorderly  style. 

I  have  been  to  see  the  Circus,  and  the  '  Bummler  von  Berlin,'  for  a 
little  amusement,  as  no  one  has  yet  invited  me. 

The  royal  theatre  and  opera-house  do  not  at  the  present  time  o£fer 
any  temptation. 

I  hope  I  shall  be  able  to  give  you  somewhat  better  news  next  time. 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Berlin,  8th  December  1854. 

Dearest  Mother, 

It  is  all  over  36  hours  ago.  But  I  did  not  write  to 
you  yesterday  because  I  wanted  to  wait  for  the  criticisms,  and  because 
the  Kamiedska  (my  good  angel)  is  starting  for  Dresden  at  mid-day 
today,  and  will  give  you  verbally  her  own  views  and  outpourings  about 
my  concert,  together  with  mine.  Hers  may  and  will  appear,  in  part, 
rosier  than  mine. 

Comfort  yourself,  however,  before  you  read  this  letter,  by  my  assur- 
ance that  I  am  in  a  good  humour  and  full  of  satisfaction  with  myself, 
which  is  the  principal  thing. 

D'abord  .  .  .  the  financial  side  ;  don't  be  alarmed !  The  expenses 
amount  to  160  reichsthalers :  38  tickets  at  1  reichsthaler  were  sold;  I 
have  therefore  122  to  pay. 

Vieuxtemps  has  had  to  pay  altogether  300  reichsthalers  out  of  his 
own  pocket  for  his  three  concerts  here.     Cela  revient  au  meme. 

You  have  made  a  great  sacrifice  for  me ;  but  I  must  tell  you  that  I 
accept  it  without  remorse. 

I  played  very  well,  with  immense  steadiness,  and  to  the  satisfaction 
of  all  the  more  talented  connoisseurs. 

The  first  criticism  appeared  yesterday  evening  in  the  Kreuzzeitung. 
It  was  an  excellent  one,  and  as  the  King  reads  that  paper  he  must  read 
the  whole  column  (which  is  a  pretty  ample  one  for  the  "feuilleton  "  of 
this  paper),  and  thus  must  observe,  and  possibly  become  curious  about, 
my  name  and  talent.     One  result. 


232  HANS  VON   BULOW. 

I  have  just  this  moment  got  the  Tante  Voss,  which  I  had  sent  for. 
Rellstab  has  eaten  his  own  words.  He  inveighs  against  my  performance 
of  the  E  fiat  major  Concerto,  which  I  played  in  a  masterly  manner,  and 
cuts  me  up,  with  egards.  He  does  not  allow  that  I  had  any  delicacy  or 
expression  in  the  Adagio,  whereas  it  was  just  these  two  attributes  that 
moved  my  friends  to  tears,  as  they  assured  me  with  heartfelt  emotion 
after  the  concert. 

Truhn  predicted  this  transformation  beforehand.  He  assured  me 
that  Kellstab  has  gone  mad,  and  that  in  all  his  recent  criticisms  he  rides 
to  death  the  idea  of  "aberrations."  This  prophetie  was  so  true  that 
Truhn  won  two  bottles  of  champagne  from  someone  with  whom  he  had  a 
bet  about  it  after  the  concert.  I  am  delighted  at  that !  Johanna 
Wagner  also  comes  in  for  her  share  of  "  aberrations." 

Kossak,  the  most  dreaded  of  all  the  critics,  the  most  able,  the 
wittiest  of  them  all,  who  reports  for  Konigsberg,  Breslau,  Cologne,  etc., 
was,  on  the  other  hand,  delighted,  and,  in  spite  of  his  being  most 
tremendously  busy,  he  has  begged  me  to  play  to  him  privatim  next 
Sunday.     I  am  very  much  pleased  at  this. 

Madame  Schumann  was  so  un-colleague-like  as  to  advertise  her  big 
soiree  with  Joachim,  which  is  to  take  place  on  the  11th,  on  the  very 
day  of  my  concert. 

Of  course  I  cannot  give  a  second  concert  now,  just  at  Christmas-time, 
and  indeed  no  second  one  at  all,  unless  Joachim  were  to  be  so  amiable 
as  to  play  with  me,  which  is  possible,  if  he  has  not  too  completely  allied 
himself  with  Clara  Schumann.  Perhaps  also  Vivier  *  will  play  for  me. 
The  expenses  of  a  concert  sans  orchestre  would  be  50  to  75  reichsthalers, 
according  to  the  room. 

Stahr  will  write  about  me,  first  in  the  Weimar'sche  Zeitung,  and  then 
somewhere  else.  Bruno  Bauer  was  quite  delighted  with  my  playing  of 
Bach.  Emil  Naumann  paid  me  some  enthusiastic  compliments,  of  course 
not  genuine,  but  still  he  could  not  help  making  them. 

At  the  rehearsal  I  played,  in  fact,  almost  better.  The  Liebig  orchestra, 
who  supported  me  very  well,  put  down  their  instruments  after  every 
piece,  and  applauded  me  with  great  warmth.  People  said  things  to  me 
which  it  warmed  my  heart  to  hear. 

KuUak,  and  others  also,  have  strongly  advised  me  to  go  to  Posen :  I 
shall  therefore  take  the  necessary  steps  to  bring  this  about. 

Johanna  is  an  angel !  You  would  have  kissed  and  hugged  her,  if 
you  had  seen  her  with  me — I  mean,  if  you  had  seen  how  she  was 
with  me. 

*  A  horn  player. 


DRESDEN — CHOCIESZEWICE — BEKLIN.  233 

Both  your  letters  I  have  received.  A  thousand  thanks  for  all 
your  love. 

Half  an  hour  before  the  concert  I  got  a  dear,  dear  letter  from  Liszt, 
by  which  I  felt  myself  raised  and  strengthened  to  an  uncommon  degree. 

I  cannot  tell  you  how  much  good  it  does  me  to  have  the  hearty 
sympathy  of  all  the  young  artists  here  whom  I  respect,  and  for  whose 
opinion  I  care.  It  makes  quite  a  different  man  of  me.  I  have  here 
so  many  friendly  relations  with  people  who  live  in  the  same  element  as 
myself,  and  who,  by  their  greater  repose  and  intelligent  self-command, 
act  in  a  most  beneficial  and  not  exciting  manner  on  me. 

Marx  invited  me  lately  to  dine  with  him  ;  he  then  made  me,  half 
and  half,  the  most  remarkable  proposals  :  KuUak  is  leaving  the  Con- 
servatoire, and  I  am  to  think  it  over  whether  I  will  take  his  post  as 
Piano  Professor. 

It  is  not  a  Government,  but  a  semi-official  musical,  appointment, 
pecuniarily  fluctuating.     Nevertheless  it  is  worth  considering. 

It  would  be  more  likely  to  lead  to  something,  than  playing  the 
.schoolmaster  in  the  country  in  Poland.  Today  or  early  tomorrow  I  shall 
go  to  him.     I  will  write  to  you  more  definitely  within  24  hours. 

Now  I  must  make  haste  to  finish  my  letter.  Spener's  paper,  and  the 
ministerial  papers,  give  me,  on  the  one  side,  high  praise,  and  on  the 
other  a  slap  in  the  face,  only  not  a  la  Vienna  press. 

The  Nationalzeitung  will  have  its  long  article  in  tomorrow,  written 
by  the  blind  Gumprecht,  an  enormously  clever  and  kindly  musical  critic. 

The  concert  has  come  to  132  reichsthalers,  and  not  122,  as  I  have 
just  learnt  from  Bock. 

Two  letters  have  just  this  moment  reached  me  from  University 
friends  of  mine,  one  of  whom  is  referendary  in  Dantzig,  and  the  other 
in  Posen.  Possibly  these  two  old  friends  may  be  able  to  help  me  in 
what  I  eventually  undertake. 

I  have  caught  a  little  cold,  and  have  a  cough. 

Tomorrow  morning  I  will  write  to  you  again,  so  please  be  satisfied 
with  these  hasty  lines  for  today.  If  you  only  knew  how  wearied  to 
death  I  have  been  all  this  time — on  Tuesday  I  had  to  drive  about  the 
town  for  3  hours — you  would  not  take  it  amiss  that  I  have  not  been  able 
to  look  about  any  further  for  private  rooms. 

Farewell,  beloved  mother ! 

More  anon,  and,  it  is  to  be  hoped,  more  definite  news. 

When  does  Giacomo  come  back  here  ? 


234  HANS  VON    BULOW. 


TO   HIS   MOTHEK. 

Berlin,  lith  December  1854. 

Beloved  Mother, 

I  shall  very  likely  have  to  leave  here  soon  and  go  back 
to  Posen,  because  I  am  spending  such  an  enormous  amount  of  money  here. 
But  at  any  rate  the  result  of  it  has  been  that  I  have  enjoyed  eight  very 
pleasant,  almost  unclouded,  days. 

Every  hour  I  expect  news  from  Kbnigsberg  telling  me  whether  I  can 
play  in  the  theatre  there,  which  is  more  desirable  even  than  in  Breslau 
where  Clara  Schumann  also  gave  her  two  concerts  in  the  theatre. 

Do  not  expect  me  to  write  to  you  in  an  orderly  manner — I  am  so  ex- 
cessively preoccupied  by  all  sorts  of  things,  and  have  so  very  little  time. 
In  the  early  morning  hours  I  have  calls  from  young  artists  and  friends, 
who  are  so  good  as  to  bring  me  the  latest-published  favourable  articles 
about  me.  Truhn  wrote  lately  really  enthusiastically  about  me,  and 
turned  the  comparison  provoked  by  Frau  Schumann  to  my  advantage. 
A  very  witty  critic,  who  himself  edits  his  paper,  Phonix,  has  today  noted 
down  a  lot  of  little  particulars  about  me,  partly  absurd  and  partly  inter- 
esting. As  Dr.  Klein  is  a  friend  of  Johanna  Wagner's,  she  will  probably 
send  this  paper  to  the  Kamienska,  and  you  are  sure  to  hear  it  read  there. 

I  have  left  a  card  for  Meyerbeer,  begging  him  to  fix  a  time  when  I 
can  see  him. 

Joachim  was  very  pleasant  to  me  at  yesterday's  concert,  and  came 
constantly  to  my  seat  where  I  was  applauding  the  Schumann,  and  talked 
to  me  during  the  intervals.  She  played  the  Kreutzer  sonata  roughly, 
but,  on  the  other  hand,  played  a  great  pianoforte  piece  by  Schumann  with 
such  understanding,  so  much  tone  and  energy,  that  I  was  really  quite  lost 
in  admiration.  I  believe  I  must  not  think  of  a  second  concert  just  now. 
Joachim  will  have  to  play  with  Frau  Schumann  once  more,  and  by  that 
time  Christmas  will  be  upon  us.  'Tis  a  pity,  a  pity,  a  pity  !  We  two 
should  have  done  more  with  the  Beethoven  sonata  here  also  ;  it  went  far 
better  that  time  in  Erfurt. 

The  answers  from  Kbnigsberg,  and  about  the  Court  concert  here,  are 
the  two  matters  which,  on  the  ground  of  expediency,  still  detain  me. 

Next  Thursday  I  am  to  be  proposed  at  the  "  Liedertafel "  and — 
accepted,  as  an  honorary  member.  This  society  in  particular  gives  me 
now  already  an  incitement  to  composition.  But  in  provincial  towns, 
Dresden  and  the  like,  and  in  Chocieszewice — whence  can  one  get  encour- 
agement for  practical  work  ? 

I  had  a  few  words  lately  with  Marx.    He  seemed  to  avoid  mentioning 


DRESDEN — CHOCIESZEWICE — BEKLIN.  235 

the  subject  of  my  last  letter,  which  rather  confirms  the  report,  which  has 
reached  me  from  various  quarters,  that  Frau  Schumann  will  occupy  the 
third  place  at  the  Conservatoire,  between  Stern  and  Marx,  in  place  of 
Kullak. 

Yesterday  morning  I  played  at  Dr.  FtLrst's — where  they  were,  more- 
over, very  polite  to  me.  Dr.  Kossak  had  begged  me  to  play  Liszt's  later 
compositions  to  him  at  his  room. 

Now  for  the  most  interesting  thing  I  have  to  tell  you,  which  comes 
late  because,  with  my  confused  brain,  the  pen  mechanically  outruns  the 
thoughts. 

On  Friday  evening  I  found  an  invitation  to  Count  Redern,  to  go  at 
9  o'clock  next  morning  to  hear  the  band  of  80  men  play  the  military  music 
composed  by  him  for  the  torch-dancing  in  his  entrance  hall.  I  go  in  a 
plain  coat  "sans  fagon."  Who  should  be  sitting  in  the  breakfast-room 
but  the  Prince  of  Prussia — Prince  Friedrich,  his  son  Prince  George,  and  a 
Prince  of  Mecklenburg  !  I  was  introduced  to  them  all,  and  talked  with 
them  for  some  time.  At  the  conclusion  of  the  military  spectacle  I  was 
requested  to  play  something  to  them  in  the  drawing-room.  The  Prince  of 
Prussia  had,  alas,  already  taken  his  leave.  At  the  instigation  of  Prince 
George,  who  is  a  very  cultivated  musician  and  moreover  delightfully 
amiable  in  conversation,  I  played  the  'Patineurs,'  and  made  a  great 
effect  with  it.  Their  Highnesses  stood  round  the  grand  piano,  where  I 
was  obliged  to  repeat  some  of  the  most  "  incredible  "  passages,  to  their 
astonishment. 

I  received  your  letter  yesterday,  Tuesday,  morning,  but,  alas,  not  much 
good  news  in  it.  The  way  you  write  to  me  about  Joachim  and  Clara 
Schumann  has  hurt  me.  I  had  unfortunately  behaved  rather  haughtily 
to  the  latter — quite  without  intention,  and  she  had  felt  so  injured  by  it 
that  Joachim  made  friendly  remonstrances  to  me,  and  I  determined  to 
do  all  I  possibly  could  to  make  up  for  my  involuntary  error. 

I  think  I  may  assume  that  on  the  receipt  of  my  letter  you  will  think 
differently  about  these  things  from  what  you  did  when  writing  to  me. 

"  Die  ignohelsten  Feinde  des  Menschen :  Neid  und  Furcht "  (the  most 
ignoble  enemies  of  mankind ;  Envy  and  Fear) ;  these  often  attack  me 
also ;  but  I  have  always  victoriously  subdued  them  by  my  best  inner 
forces.  And,  though  quite  determined  to  make  my  way  without  looking 
back,  still  I  shall  never  make  use  of  any  means  for  which  I  should  have 
to  blush  before  my  old  friends,  and  I  assure  you  I  have  kept  none  but 
the  most  honourable  people  as  my  friends.* 

*  What  kind  of  remarks  are  here  referred  to  is  shown  in  a  letter  of  his  mother's 
to  Isidore  at  that  time. 

■'Joachim  is  playing  with  Frau  Schumann  in  Berlin!    Hans  is,  nevertheless, 


236  HANS  VON   BULOW. 

Yesterday  I  went  to  see  Meyerbeer,  who  had  fixed  the  morning  at 
12  o'clock  for  my  call.  We  talked  freely  and  pleasantly  for  three 
quarters  of  an  hour.  He  also  promised,  in  the  event  of  his  own  absence, 
to  ensure  my  being  invited  to  the  great  Court  concert  of  the  Carnival, 
probably  in  January.  It  was  moreover  very  possible  that  a  Court 
concert  would  be  arranged  for  in  the  course  of  a  few  days.  (That  would 
certainly  be  more  immediately  pleasant  to  me.)  But  he  said  that  these 
matters  are  usually  ordered  so  "  d  Fimproviste "  (on  the  spur  of  the 
moment),  that  very  often  he  was  only  told  about  it  himself  the  evening 
before.     He  is  just  now  rheumatic  and  cannot  leave  his  room. 

I  went  to  see  Count  Redern  in  the  morning.  He  said  he  had  spoken 
of  me  to  their  Majesties  on  Sunday,  and  that  they  are  quite  disposed  to 
hear  me.  Patience  then ;  but  I  cannot  delay  my  journey  after  Tuesday. 
On  Monday  I  will,  if  possible,  hear  Roger,  whose  talent  as  yet  I  only 
know  from  report. 

You  may  as  well  read  the  Vossische.  *  Someone  told  me  yesterday 
that  Rellstab,  in  spite  of  many  criticisms  in  it,  speaks  of  me  as  "  standing 
alone  among  the  modern  virtuosi." 

Today  I  dine  with  Ernst,  and  play  beforehand  with  Charlotte  von 
Billow.  At  4  o'clock  I  must  go  to  a  Symphony  concert  of  Liebig  (the 
Hiinerfurst  of  Berlin — only  more  so — whose  orchestra  lately  accom- 
panied me),  to  hear  the  Prize-Symphony  by  Ulrich  t  (Dehn's  pupil,  a 
friend  of  Cornelius).  Joachim  goes  with  me.  (Tickets,  5  silber- 
groschen,  no  smoking.)  This  evening  I  shall  go  to  the  play,  where 
Calderon's  '  Medico  de  su  honra '  will  be  done ;  and  then  to  a  party  at 
the  house  of  Geheimrathin  Storch,  who  gave  away  the  complimentary 
tickets  I  sent  her,  and  paid  for  her  seats,  which  I  think  was  decidedly 
nice  of  her. 

Why  have  not  you  sent  me  the  music  to  'Caesar'?  It  is  true  I 
should  not  have  performed  it,  but  I  should  have  played  the  score  to  my 
friends.     Can  you  still  do  so  ? 

Also,  Johanna  has  promised  Prince  George  Wagner's  *  Nibelungen,' 
which  I  lent  to  Helene.  Has  Helene  given  you  the  book  back  ?  If  so, 
be  so  good  as  to  send  it  to  me  by  return.  If  Helene  still  has  it, 
Johanna's  order  to  return  it  directly  will  soon  reach  her. 

I  received  lately  from  Isidore  a  letter  20  pages  long.  I  am  glad  I 
complied  with  your  wish  and  have  written  to  her  frequently.     It  has  at 


splendid  ;  so  noble,  so  great  in  character  and  spirit,   that  I  am  the  more  hurt 
about  it." 

*  The  Vossische  Zeihvng. 

t  Professor  of  Composition  at  Stern's  Conservatoire. 


DRESDEN — CHOCIESZEWICE — BERLIN.  237 

any  rate  had  a  good  influence  upon  her ;  it  has  stimulated  and  animated 
her. 

I  am  learning  by  degrees,  in  Macchiavellian  fashion,  to  make  the 
reverses  which  I  meet  useful  to  me.  But  it  would  be  impossible,  with 
the  best  intentions,  to  tell  you  more  fully  the  details  of  my  life  here. 

I  shall  go  today  to  see  Stern,  who  expressed  his  esteem  for  me  in  a 
letter  of  "  Alberti  "-an  *  courtesy  the  day  before  yesterday,  with  apologies 
for  not  having  yet  thanked  me  personally  for  the  tickets,  as  he  is 
confined  to  his  bed. 

Joachim  is  still  a  splendid  fellow.  I  suspect  that  he  no  longer 
takes  a  fee  from  Frau  Schumann,  any  more  than  Johanna  does  from  me 
for  her  assistance.  The  latter  really  grows  more  beautiful,  more  ideal- 
looking  every  day.  In  her  morning  neglig^  yesterday,  her  hair  im- 
prisoned in  curl-papers,  she  looked  so  charming  that  I  could  hardly  help 
falling  on  my  knees.  Clara  Schumann  is  also,  in  her  way,  a  really 
beautiful  and  very  remarkable  woman. 

Enough  for  today,  so  that  you  may  not  be  kept  waiting.  How  hard 
it  is  to  me  to  go  back  to  Posen !  As  hard  as  for  a  vestal  virgin  into 
the  open  grave ! 

Without  black  coflfee,  without  any  excitement,  shall  I  be  able  to  play 
the  piano  thus  as  I  ought  to  play  it?  Impossible.  The  critic  of  the 
Nationalzeitung,  who  calls  me  Percy  Hotspur,  has  likewise  a  diflferent 
opinion  from  yours. — Lately  I  took  coffee  with  Dr.  Dohm,  editor  of 
Kladderadatsch.     He  is  a  remarkable,  assiduously  good-natured  person. 

You  ought  surely  to  feel  satisfied  with  my  present  style  of  letter.  I 
cannot  now  write  differently.  Fare  thee  well  and  without  headache, 
dear  mother. 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Berlin,  \1th  December  1854. 
Dearest  Mother, 

Best  thanks  for  your  letter  !     I  have  some  news  for  you. 
Professor  Marx  has  this  morning  now  definitively  offered  me  a  post  of 
first  pianoforte  teacher  in  the  Conservatoire  conducted  here  by  himsel 
and  music-director  Stern. 

The  contract,  which  I  shall  probably  sign,  is  to  be  laid  before  me  in 
a  few  days. 

*  Presumably  a  running-stream  of  courteous  expressions. 

"Alberti- Bass,"   so  named  after   Alberti  (bom  in  Venice  18th   century),   who 
introduced  a  bass,  consisting  of  broken  chords,  into  compositions  for  the  cembalo. 


238  HANS   VON  BiJLOW. 

The  material  advantages  are  very  trifling,  but  that  Joes  not  signify ; 
for  the  private  teaching  which  I  shall  be  able  to  give  in  Berlin  will,  I 
hope,  amount  to  much  more. 

I  have  to  begin  on  the  1st  April,  but  ought  to  be  here  a  week  or  a 
fortnight  earlier,  so  as  to  look  into  my  work.  I  shall  get  300  thalers  for 
the  first  year,  and  have  to  give  1^  hours  daily,  making  9  hours  a  week. 
That  is  in  itself  more  worth  having  than  Mycielski's  compensation  for 
my  tortures. 

Kullak  could  not  get  on  with  either  of  them. 

Marx  is  an  authority  to  me  ;  I  will  willingly  defer  to  him  wherever 
necessary ;  we  are  moreover  quite  agreed  on  the  chief  points  of  musical 
education. 

If  the  thing  comes  to  pass — for  one  can  neither  know  nor  predict 
what  may  happen — then  I  shall  at  last  have  one  foot  in  the  stirrup,  and 
the  beginning  is  made. 

I  think  that,  with  self-restraint,  and  a  Buonaparte-like  tenacity  and 
energy  of  will,  I  am  capable  of  getting  on.  It  is  true  that  you  will  have 
to  help  me  again  at  first,  self-sacrificingly ;  later  on  a  rise  of  salary,  and 
indeed  a  considerable  one,  is  guaranteed  to  me. 

But  now  please  have  the  kindness  to  send,  after  all,  to  the  restaurant 
of  the  Dresden  theatre-orchestra,  to  get  out  the  score  and  parts  of  my 
Caesar  Overture,  and  to  address  the  packet  to  Liszt  in  Weimar,  as  he  is 
going  to  have  it  performed  at  a  Stadthaus  concert. 

Tomorrow  I  shall  at  length  get  the  answer  from  Beerenmayer  as  to 
whether  I  can  play  at  Court  now,  or  not  till  January  at  the  great  Carnival 
concert. 

I  must  now  stay  here  a  few  days  longer,  to  arrange  my  immediate 
future.  It  costs  me  money,  but  that  can't  be  helped.  Mycielski  must 
advance  me  the  money  for  the  return  journey,  or  else — but  he  will  do  it. 

In  January,  moreover,  I  come  here  again  for  the  great  Court  concert, 
then  to  Dantzig  and  Kbnigsberg,  where  I  can  earn  money  to  spend  again 
in  giving  concerts  in  Berlin. 

Joachim  gives  up  his  position  in  Hanover  because  an  intriguer  there 
has  disgusted  him  with  it.     Disgraceful  lot  of  fellow-beings  ! 

To  make  your  mind  easy,  let  me  tell  you  that  I  have  only  seen  Bruno 
Bauer  for  about  five  minutes  in  all,  in  his  very  remote  dwelling,  whither 
I  went  to  take  him  two  concert-tickets,  because  he  is  such  an  admirer  of 
Bach  and  Beethoven. 

I  shall  go  this  evening  to  the  Wilhelmstadt  theatre,  in  order  to  calm 
myself  a  little,  and  see  '  die  Bummler  von  Berlin.' 

Frank  was  at  my  concert  with  his  son.  I  have  spoken  with  him  a 
couple  of  times  in  the  street.     "Was  very  friendly. 


DKESDEN— CHOCIESZEWICE — BERLIN.  239 

Tomorrow  I  shall  give  a  manuscript  to  a  publisher,  and  hope  I  may- 
receive  a  considerable  sum  for  it :  '  Impromptu  a  la  Mazurka,'  dedie  k 
Mile,  la  Comtesse  Elisa  Mycielska. 

Make  many  excuses  for  me  to  Madame  Laussot  for  having  as  yet  sent 
her  no  other  answer  than  my  concert-programme,  which  I  was  obliged  to 
settle  definitely  just  when  I  got  her  letter.  I  owe  her  my  thanks,  for  I 
had  almost  the  greatest  success  with  the  Bach,  which  I  had  really  intended 
to  give  at  the  second  concert. 

Farewell,  dear  mother ;  my  arm  aches.  Yesterday  evening  I  sent 
Clara  Schumann  a  beautiful  bouquet  before  her  concert.  "Was  not  that 
gallant  ? 

Send  me  the  Nibelungen  directly,  and  ditto  the  Caesar  to  Liszt ! 
Please,  please ! 

The  Arnims  are  certainly  not  in  Berlin  !  ! ! 

Remember  me  to  Fraulein  Draseke  ! 


TO   ALEXA2n)ER  HITTER. 

Chocieszewicb  bbi  Kroben,  25th  December  '54. 

Dear  Sascha, 

You  have  indeed  long  been  my  comfort,  but  if  you  were 
ambitious  enough  to  become  still  more  so,  I  can  now  give  you  an  excellent 
opportunity. 

Thus — if  there  is  anything  in  the  fate  of  one,  transplanted  from  the 
life-stream  of  Berlin  to  this  herring's-pond  of  Polish  solitude,  "WiUibald 
Alexis,  calculated  to  move  you  without  the  need  of  Anglo-frenchifying 
my  Ukase  with  my  snufi&ng  eloquence, — then  tie  on  the  clogs  of  friend- 
ship and  put  on  the  comforter  of  obligingness,  and  betake  yourself  first 
and  foremost  to  Cronstadt,  not  in  order  to  breakfast  there  (as  Ifapier 
forgot  to  do  from  want  of  appetite),  but  (I  mean)  to  Meinhardt's  Hotel, 
and  ask  the  slow-coach  at  the  door  if  any  letters,  etc.,  are  awaiting  me 
there.  If  by  this  time  the  bad  weather  has  not  obliged  you  to  change 
your  clothes,  be  so  kind  as  to  exchange  the  enclosed  note  at  a  neigh- 
bouring stationer's  (in  case  the  post-office  cannot)  for  12  sheets  of 
long-shape  music-paper  for  piano,  five  staves  with  a  moderate  space 
between ;  also  a  quire  of  letter-paper  like  this  pattern,  with  somewhat 
larger  white  or  blue  envelopes.  Should  you  then  have  about  12 
silbergroschen  over,  it  would  be  uncommonly  friendly  of  you  to  get  me 
a  packet  of  Spiglasoffs,  the  only  kind  of  cigars  which  I  can  allow  myself 
here. 


240  HANS  VON   BULOW. 

If  you  can  grant  my  request,  I  want  you  simply  to  tie  the  paper, 
cigars,  and  any  letters  from  Meinhardt's  Hotel  together,  and  to  send 
them  as  quickly  as  possible  by  post  to  me  in  my  Steppe,  like  an  oasis  in 
my  desert. 

In  this  case  be  assured  of  my  apostolic  blessing,  my  hearty  New 
Year's  wishes,  my  unbounded  esteem,  devotion,  readiness  to  serve,  and 
musical  well-wishing.  The  music-paper  is  the  most  important  thing,  as 
in  my  spare  time  (which  I  hope  will  only  last  a  fortnight)  I  wish  and 
am  obliged  to  make  some  four-hand  arrangements  from  Tannhauser  for 
Meser. 

If  you  are  writing  to  Carl — do  do  so — give  my  greetings  and  say  I 
will  soon  answer  him.  But  beg  him  to  send  me  as  quickly  as  possible 
2  or  3  copies — at  any  rate  1,  of  the  '  Alcibiades.'  I  shall  be  able  to 
make  it  known. 

My  warmest  regards  to  your  wife.  Give  a  suitable  message  from  me 
to  your  gifted  sister-in-law.  Ask  her  if  I  may  compose  the  sea  of 
waving  com  for  her,  if  I  don't  let  the  breakers  roll  too  high. 

My  greetings  to  Berlin,  and  enjoy  yourself  there  enough  for  both  of 
us.     Is  there  any  news  from  Weimar  ? 

Be  sure  not  to  prepay  the  parcel.  It  is  a  disgusting  business  with 
the  postal  communication  here.  Write  to  me  moreover  about  all  sorts 
of  things.  Get  up  a  quarter  of  an  hour  earlier,  for  you  will  have  plenty 
of  time  before  10  o'clock  to  do  and  to  leave  undone  everything  possible. 
Adieu. 

Send  me  the  Kladderadatseh  Calendar  too,  if  you  have  read  it.  I 
will  make  some  fun  with  it  for  an  unhappy  comrade  here. 

TO  MADAME  LAUSSOT. 

Chocieszewice,  2Wi  December  1854, 
My  dear  Madam, 

You  have  already  shown  me  many  kindnesses, 
for  which  I,  faithful  to  the  natural  disposition  of  a  born  egotistical 
recipient,  have  not  yet  once  thanked  you.  But  the  benefactor  certainly 
does  not  stick  at  that.  And — as  my  mother  wrote,  to  my  great  joy — 
you  have  no  doubt  understood  my  indirect  answer,  which  I  printed  in 
the  Berlin  papers,  to  your  kind  letter.*  Nothing  could  have  happened 
more  "  a  tempo,"  for  your  excellent  advice  played  into  my  hands  like  a 
"  host  ex  machina,"  just  at  the  very  moment  when  I  was  brooding  over 

*  The  public  announcement  of  the  concert-programme    suggested  by  Madame 
Laussot, 


DRESDEN — CHOCIESZEWICE — BERLIN  241 

the  arranging  of  my  programme ;  and,  though  I  had  had  tea  for  my 
breakfast,  in  opposition  to  Moleschott,  not  a  single  drop  of  practical 
spirit  from  the  tea  would  pour  from  the  sieve  of  my  pen. 

Possibly  some  of  the  Berlin  criticisms  about  me  may  have  come 
under  your  notice,  through  my  mother.  In  that  case  you  will  have 
seen  that  it  was  my  Bach,  principally,  that  swelled  the  measure  of 
commendation  given  to  me  by  the  papers,  and  that  the  contrast  with 
the  Chopin  Ballade  also  answered  a  good  purpose  to  me ;  consequently 
you  will  certainly  have  congratulated  me  for  having  followed  your 
counsel.  But  whether  you  will  now  finally  allow  me  to  give  myself  over 
to  a  devout  superstition,  and  to  beg  for  your  kind  advice  and  good 
wishes  on  another  occasion — this  is  a  question  which,  indeed,  it  is  not 
for  me  to  answer  in  the  affirmative. 

How  much  I  am  indebted  to  you  that  you  have  brightened  up  so 
many  hours  for  my  dear  mother  by  your  delightful  society.  Not  on  my 
mother's  account  alone,  but  on  my  own,  am  I  indebted  to  you  for  this. 
It  seemed  to  me,  in  my  correspondence  with  her  latterly,  that  there 
were  many  traces  where,  through  the  delicate  insinuations  of  your 
eloquence,  some  modifications  had  already  crept  into  certain  of  her 
views  of  art  and  of  society,  which  had  been  so  diametrically  opposed  to 
mine.  Now  no  one  can  have  less  talent  and  vocation  for  softening  down 
contrasts  or  opposition  than  I ;  and  how  often  I  have  wished,  just  in 
living  with  my  mother,  that  I  had  this  faculty  which  is  wanting  in  me. 
Now  as  I  am  to  enter  into  my  new  position  in  Berlin  on  the  Ist  April  of 
the  coming  year,  and  as  my  mother  will  also  very  probably  settle  in 
Berlin  next  Easter,  which  would  be  a  great  satisfaction  to  me  personally, 
I  like  to  think  that  you,  dear  Madam,  have  somewhat  paved  the  way 
for  me  in  these  matters ;  for  it  is,  of  your  own  free  choice,  your  special 
mission  to  destroy  prejudices,  and  in  the  home  circle — that  final  and 
most  snug  resort  of  all  sorts  of  unreasonable  opinions — to  do  this  most 
radically  and  effectually.  When  I  saw  you  again  the  first  time  in 
Dresden,  you  spoke  to  me  about  this  very  subject.  I  was  struck  by 
your  words  at  that  time ;  for  I  thought  you  only  meant  that  you  would 
make  an  attempt  you  had  not  yet  made,  and  I  did  not  know  that  you 
possessed  the  power  of  accomplishing  it,  and  that  it  was  the  conscious- 
ness of  being  able  to  do  a  thing  that  had  led  you  to  vrish  to  do  it. 

I  do  not,  however,  altogether  agree  with  your  view  about  the  "  public," 
although  I  acknowledge  that  yours  is  more  normal,  healthier,  and  more 
objectively  reasonable  than  my  subjective  feeling  and  opinion. 

I  have  gradually  learnt,  not  through  the  channel  of  the  understanding, 
but  rather  through  my  feelings,  to  renounce  my  reverent  worship  of  the 
*'  Spirit  of  Universality,"  of  the  god  "  Humanity  "  of  certain  pantheistic 

Q 


242  HANS  VON  BULOW. 

French  Socialists  and  of  Feuerbach  who  preceded  them.  Yes,  I  confess 
it  openly;  I  hate  that  ideal  police-god  just  as — without  drawing  a  parallel 
— Voltaire  persecuted  the  Nazarene  God. 

At  present  I  am  by  belief  an  "  Individualist,"  and,  if  I  do  not  always 
manifest  it  in  action,  I  am  all  the  more  absolute  and  zealous  in  my  theo- 
retical impulses.  In  general  I  think  we  may  giye  much  more  considera- 
tion to  our  ideal  aspirations  in  practice  than  in  theory.  A  methodical 
Idealism  becomes  coarse,  heavy  and  measurable,  and  annihilates  itself 
where  it  does  not  become  simply  absurd.  So  I,  for  my  part,  confess  in 
theory  to  a  feeling  of  respect  only  for  that  fraction  of  the  "  Spirit  of 
Universality  "  to  which  I  myself  belong.  Now  as  regards  the  little  I  may 
have  accomplished  in  my  Art,  the  value  of  which  consists  in  undeniable 
perfectibility  alone ;  and  as  regards  my  claims  to  a  recognition  of  it  by 
the  public,  that  is,  by  a  handful  of  the  *'  Spirit  of  Universality ; "  I  am 
only  susceptible  to  the  influence  of  applause  in  moments  of  nervous  phy- 
sical excitement.  In  cooler  moments  the  judgment  of  a  mass  of  people 
never  exercises  any  attraction  or  influence  upon  me,  however  much  I  feel 
the  value  of  winning  the  sympathy  of  some  of  its  individual  members. 
Every  one  of  its  manifestations  has  some  sort  of  bribe  to  action.  But 
true  Art  never  bribes,  directly  or  indirectly.  Were  I  not  restrained,  by 
my  individual  subjectivity,  from  reducing  my  theory  to  practice,  and  had 
I  the  means  to  do  it,  I  would  not  hesitate  a  moment  (supposing  they  were 
able  to  do  me  the  same  service)  to  win  over  my  audience  in  the  same  way 
as  Louis  Napoleon  won  his  French  army.  In  acquiring  those  advantages 
which  admit  of  the  individual's  ceasing  for  a  moment  to  ignore  the  "Spirit 
of  Universality,"  it  is  success  alone  which  determines  the  excellence  of 
the  means.  You  see  I  am  a  Jesuit  also  ;  and  you  were  afraid  your  advice 
would  seem  Jesuitical  to  me  !  But  what  says  the  Italian  proverb  ? 
"  Vincasi  per  fortuna  o  per  iuganno — 
II  vincer  fu  sempre  laudabil'  cosa." 

I  have  a  peculiar  predilection  for  Louis  Napoleon ;  that  is  to  say,  not 
so  much  for  his  person  as  for  the  indigenous  compendium  of  the  19th 
century  which  he  represents  to  me.  As  such  he  is  a  child,  a  result,  of 
the  latest  German  philosophy,  that  is  to  say,  of  that  which  has  become 
rational  through  emancipation  of  itself.  Buonapartism  is  a  philosophical 
system  reduced  to  practice  and  to  policy — i.e.  the  Buonapartism  of  1850 
par  excellence.  But  I  have  also,  personally,  a  certain  kindred  leaning 
towards  "  Napoleon  le  Petit."  It  seems  to  me  that  I,  in  my  proportions 
to  Franz  Liszt,  my  uncle  by  election,  stand  in  a  very  similar  relation  to 
that  which  Napoleon  III.  bore  to  the  great  Emperor  ;  and  it  pleases  me 
to  think  that  the  mentally-adopted  nephew  might  perhaps  have  as  much 
luck,  as  he  has  little  real  genius,  vis-a-vis  of  the  uncle. 


DKESDEN — CHOCIESZEWICE — BERLIN.  243 

For  a  first  letter  to  you,  it  seems  to  me  that  I  ought  to  make  a  post- 
script of  excuses  for  a  heap  of  stupidities  I  have  written.  For  the  rest, 
I  imagined  to  myself  what  I  have  written  above,  solely  with  the  view  of 
thereby  evading,  in  a  "  good  "  manner,  your  friendly  invitation  to  me  to 
tell  you  about  my  concert  and  all  my  other  experiences  in  Berlin.  Spare 
me  the  description  of  miseries — of  the  disagreeable,  as  well  as  of  the 
agreeable  side,  for  that,  in  short,  is  the  substance  of  all  that  I  should  have 
to  tell. 

I  have  renewed,  in  Berlin,  an  interesting  personal  acquaintance  with 
Karl  Llihrss,  the  composer,  a  pupil  of  Mendelssohn,  who  composes  western 
music. 

Allow  me  to  recommend  to  you  the  following  of  his  compositions  : 
'Marchen,'  kleine  Tonstiicke;  3  books.  Op.  25,  Trautwein  (Guttentag), 
Berlin.  *  Barcarole '  (G  flat  major) ;  and  '  Trois  Danses  brillantes.* 
Senff,  Leipzig.  I  take  this  opportunity  of  mentioning  to  you  also  two 
very  important  piano-pieces,  by  the  composer  Julius  Schaeffer :  *  Fan- 
tasiestiicke '  Op.  1 ;  and  Fantasia — *  Variationen '  (E  minor)  Op.  2, 
Breitkopf  &  Hartel,  Leipzig. 

From  Wagner  I  have  heard  nothing  for  a  whole  month.  The  last 
time  he  wrote  to  me  he  said  he  had  begun  the  third  Act  of  the  'Walkure,' 
and  he  appeared  to  be  freed  from  his  most  pressing  diflBculties.  From 
Liszt  you  have  no  doubt  had  news  direct.  A  propos^  Wagner  has  lately 
become  tremendously  enthusiastic  for  Arthur  Schopenhauer,  the  philo- 
sopher so  long  ignored  by  his  fraternity.    Do  you  know  any  of  his  works  ? 

For  the  present  of  Alfred  de  Musset  I  thank  you  once  more  "  en  con- 
naissance  de  cause."  But,  just  in  those  selections  you  have  marked,  it 
would  be  interesting  to  me  to  hear  your  opinion  of  them  in  detail.  In 
several  of  them  the  essential,  main  idea  seemed  to  me  to  be  so  very  slightly 
connected  with  the  otherwise  charming  form. 

May  I  beg  you  to  remember  me  most  warmly  to  the  Ritters  ?  Karl 
wrote  to  me  not  long  ago,  but  not  a  word  about  himself,  and  I  had  a 
couple  of  delightful  days  with  Sascha  in  Berlin.  I  am  longing  for  the 
time  of  my  removal  thither ;  life  in  the  country  puts  one  dreadfully  out 
of  tune,  and  a  schoolmaster's  functions  in  the  country  would  hurry  one 
into  one's  dotage,  or  back  into  puerility,  a  thing  from  which  a  great  city 
preserves  one. 

Thank  you  once  more,  my  dear  lady,  for  the  interest  and  kindness 
you  have  shown  me,  and  allow  me  to  reciprocate  your  good  wishes  to 

Yours  most  respectfully, 

Hans  v.  BClow. 


BRESLAU—POSEN— BERLIN 


CHAPTER  XL 
BRESLA  U—POSEN— BERLIN, 

WINTER — SPRING    1856. 

BuLOW  was  now  on  the  eve  of  leaving  Chocieszewice  again.      In  a  letter 
to  his  mother,  from  that  place,  dated  2nd  January  1855,  he  says  : — 

Next  Saturday,  6th  January,  I  go  to  Breslau,  and  shall  play  for  the 
first  time  in  Truhn's  concert.  If  they  like  me  very  much,  then  I  shall 
arrange  matters  with  the  theatre  in  the  same  way  that  Clara  Schumann  did. 

The  ensuing  months  seem  to  have  been  anxious  ones  for  Billow's  mother, 
owing  to  the  irregularity  and  scarcity  of  letters  from  her  son.  The  following 
extracts  from  the  mother's  letters  to  her  daughter,  who  was  still  in  Paris,  show 
how  difficult  it  was  for  the  young  virtuoso  to  get  so  far  in  his  profession  as  to 
attain  pecuniary  independence.  In  spite  of  the  great  interest  and  pleasure  he 
awakened,  in  the  long  concert-tours  in  Germany  which  now  ensued,  yet 
expenses  were  so  great,  and  receipts  as  yet  so  insufficient,  as  to  necessitate  a 
continuance  of  help  from  his  self-sacrificing  mother. 

FRANZISKA  VON  BULOW  TO  HER  DAUGHTER 

"  At  last  comes  a  letter  from  Hans  !  He  still  sticks  at  Breslau,  but  con- 
tentedly lets  himself  be  admired  and  dragged  hither  and  thither  to  such  a 
degree  that  he  never  gets  so  far  as  to  write  a  word  to  me.  He  still  decides  to 
go  to  Konigsberg.  Tonight  he  is  playing  to  the  students  at  Breslau.  On 
Sunday  there  is  to  be  a  monster-concert,  at  which  he  plays,  and  where  he 
hopes  to  make  some  money.  God  grant  it,  if  one  may  trouble  God  about  such 
a  thing." 

In  the  middle  of  February  the  mother  complains  that  the  latest  news  of 
her  son  has  come  to  her  only  through  the  papers :  tidings  of  a  farewell-matinde 
in  Breslau,  and  of  a  concert  on  the  same  day  for  the  sufferers  at  Keuth. 

"  This,  however,  is  all  I  know  about  him.  What  has  happened  next ;  and 
has  he  money,  or  has  he  none  ?  I  fear  it  is  the  latter.  To  have  such  a  child, 
rushing  about  the  world  in  all  sorts  of  adventures,  is  truly  no  sinecure.  As 
our  shoemaker  lately  said  :  *  The  Herr  Sohn  has  become  a  genius.' " 


248  HANS  VON   BiJLOW. 

On  the  19th  February  she  writes  : — 

**  At  last  a  letter  from  Hans.  He  has  given  nine  concerts  in  Breslau,  and 
has  at  least  earned  enough  to  pay  his  five  weeks  in  the  hoteh  He  has  been 
quite  taken  up  there  by  the  army,  the  cuirassiers,  hussars,  &c.,  and  has  been 
constantly  amongst  them.  Now  he  is  in  Posen,  where  he  finds  it  terribly 
cold.  .  .  .  If  he  only  becomes  reasonable  at  last !  He  won't  take  any  advice 
from  me.  It  is  a  great  misfortune  for  him  that  he  has  lost  his  father,  for  he 
did  understand  how  to  influence  him.  .  .  .  He  has  only  sent  newspapers  : 
they  give  him  great  praise,  but  regret  that  the  concerts  were  so  empty." 


TO  HIS  MOTHER. 

Posen,  February  28,  1855. 

Dear  Mamma, 

Thanks  for  your  letters.  I  wanted  to  wait  over  the 
third  concert,  yesterday,  before  writing  to  you.  It  was  such  a  pity  that 
^e  did  not  get  so  far  as  the  question  of  expenses.  I  despise  the  whole 
Polish  race  to  the  n***  power !  For  the  rest,  it  is  a  curious  city,  Posen  ! 
Such  a  separation  as  there  is  between  the  German  and  Polish  elements 
I  never  met  before.  The  second  concert,  in  which  my  singer  became 
hoarse,  and  so  I  had  to  play  the  piano  for  two  whole  hours,  was  hardly 
attended  by  any  but  Poles — the  result  being  69  thalers,  which  was 
enough  to  cover  the  expenses  of  the  two  first  concerts  together.  Yester- 
day's audience  was  exclusively  German  (with  the  exception  of  Mycielski's 
brother,  who  came  over  from  his  estate  to  hear  me  again,  and  is  a 
pleasant,  well-bred,  and  musical  man),  headed  by  chief  president  von 
Puttkammer,  who  conversed  with  me  most  amiably,  and  sent  his  card 
today  to  invite  me  for  Friday  evening.  Of  course  the  concerts  are 
continuing ;  we  have  to  give  5  or  6  of  them. 

The  Germans  mostly  pay  nothing  for  concert  tickets,  but  are  very 
lavish  with  invitations.  Herr  von  Hindenburg,  the  chief  of  the  police  ; 
Herr  Buttendorf,  the  chief  of  the  post  office ;  Justice  Dbnniges,  amongst 
others,  have  delightful  houses. 

I  once  dined  at  Count  Dzialydski's.  Now  I  give  daily  lessons  to  the 
youngest  Countess,  who  is  not  a  pretty  girl,  but  very  charming  and  full 
of  talent.  I  shall  either  take  no  fee  or  present  her  when  I  leave  with 
an  extremely  valuable  album^  because  I  like  her  so  much.  There  is 
something  really  poetical  about  her.  I  shall  dedicate  a  Reverie  to  her. 
The  Kamienska  is  to  have  a  "Waltz. 


BRESLAU — POSEN — BERUN.  249 

Explanation  of  enclosure  No.  1.  * 

The  Pole  who  signed  the  enclosed  had  heard  that  I  was  to  teach  the 
Countess  Dzialynska.  Immediately,  from  a  love  of  rivalry — peculiar  to  the 
Pole, — he  wishes  his  daughter  to  learn  from  me  also.  After  his  call  I  send 
him  a  card  on  which  is  written  '^est  dispose  a  donner  des  lemons  pendant 
son  sejour  a  Posen — a  1  diicat  la  legon."  Thereupon  he  answered  thus — I 
of  course  took  no  notice  of  it : — On  a  tour — in  hotels — as  a  virtuoso  I 
could  not — according  to  Truhn — possibly  take  less  than  one  ducat  an  hour. 

I  have  now  considerably  enlarged  my  Chopin-repertoire  : 

Ballade,  two  Scherzos,  four  Nocturnes,  two  Impromptus,  two  Polon- 
aises, four  Mazurkas,  Barcarole,  Berceuse,  and  various  Etudes. 

Truhn  has  just  written  to  Bromberg,  which  is  in  every  respect  more 
favourable  than  Posen,  as  he  knows  from  experience.  Only  we  must 
get  away  from  here  first.  Finally  there  would  also  be  the  theatre  to 
play  in,  to  which  the  well-known  conductor  Wallner  has  invited  us  with 
increasingly  favourable  conditions,  but  which  we  have,  notwithstanding, 
always  refused.  We  must  now  leave  this  arrangement  to  Justice 
Dbnniges.  He  is  a  very  good  sort  of  man — takes  concert- tickets  even 
when  he  is  unable  to  use  them. 

Have  you  no  indirect  news  from  Weimar?  I  should  so  like  to 
know  whether  Liszt  has  already  set  off  for  Vienna. 

The  Countess  Dzialyiiska  has  just  written  to  me  that  it  will  not  be 
possible  for  her  to  take  a  lesson  before  Saturday,  as  she  has  too  much 
else  to  do.  I  have  refused  the  invitation  for  this  evening,  and  shall 
moreover  go  to  no  more  Poles. 

I  am  writing  today  to  Professor  Marx  about  the  Conservatoire,  and 
will  let  you  know  his  answer. 

If  I  am  going  to  be  condemned  to  waste  my  life  for  a  year  in  Berlin 
I  shall  of  course  yield  to  my  fate  without  complaining,  only  I  shall 
then  be  obliged  to  beg  you  to  remove  thither  quickly.  You  must  make 
this  sacrifice  for  me.  My  theoretical  wits  are  not  equal  to  undertaking 
household  matters.  Moreover  I  must  be  very  careful  of  myself — all  my 
strength  belongs  to  my  art,  and  nothing  else  matters  to  me. 

Our  life  here  is  uncommonly  respectable.  I  have  quite  given  up 
going  to  the  '*  Kneipe"  even  at  the  risk  of  being  thought  wanting  in 
good  fellowship.  And  Truhn  is  also  too  much  of  a  gentleman  and  too 
particular  for  it. 

Think  lovingly  of  your  son, 

Hans  von  BClow, 

"  le  plus  enguignonne  (unlucky)  des  pianistes." 

*  The  enclosed  letter,  here  referred  to,  which  Billow  sent  to  his  mother,  is  no 
longer  extant. 


250  HANS  VON  BiJLOW. 


TO  FKANZ  LISZT, 

PosEN,  lith  March  1855.     Bazar.* 
My  vbry  dbab  and  illustrious  Master, 

You  have  several  times  given  me  the  precious  permission 
to  write  to  you  about  myself.  I  have  always  tried  not  to  abuse  this 
kindness,  by  not  writing  to  you  at  times  when  I  could  only  have  told 
you  of  the  thousand  and  one  miseries  in  the  career  of  a  Lilliputian 
pianist,  which  would  have  sometimes  appeared  to  you  incomprehensible. 

Nevertheless  I  have  not  been  without  a  few  agreeable  weeks  at 
Breslau,  where  I  gave  about  eight  concerts  in  company  with  Mr.  Truhn, 
to  whom  I  joined  myself  at  the  beginning  of  the  New  Year,  and  for 
whom  I  feel  a  friendship  which  has  been  strengthened  between  us  by 
his  own  amiable  qualities  of  a  true  artist  and  a  practical  and  useful  man, 
as  well  as  by  our  mutual  sympathies  in  art.  Breslau  is  a  town  which 
might  well  have  a  certain  musical  future  in  the  future.  I  do  not  say 
this  because  I  have  found  a  publisher  there,  but  in  spite  of  this  fact. 

We  did  a  very  bad  business  at  Posen,  where  we  gave  four  concerts, 
the  latter  ones  of  which  did  not  even  suffice  to  pay  the  expenses  of  this 
unlucky  undertaking.  In  spite  of  letters  of  introduction,  by  means  of 
which  I  thought  I  should  have  some  success,  the  Poles  were  much  less 
kind  to  me  than  Mr.  de  Puttkammer  and  the  few  Germans  who  live  at 
Posen.  I  felt  the  Poles  to  be  rather  freezing ;  but  these  impressions  led 
me  nevertheless  to  respond  to  them  in  a  manner  quite  in  harmony  with 
anti-Mortier  +  principles,  which  I  have  continued  to  profess  in  my  career, 
and  which  I  cannot  reproach  myself  with  ever  having  violated  up  to 
now.  After  having  given  a  passably  good  first  concert  at  Bromberg  on 
Monday,  the  12th  March,  I  have  returned  to  Posen,  to  play  tonight  in 
the  theatre,  in  a  performance  that  the  Poles  have  arranged  for  the 
benefit  of  the  poor. 

I  shall  return  to  Bromberg  in  a  few  days,  to  give  a  second  concert 
there,  which  will  be  a  much  more  brilliant  one  than  the  first.  Then  we 
go  again  to  Dantzig,  and  finally  to  Kbnigsberg.  I  should  be  very  grate- 
ful to  you  if  you  would  have  the  kindness  to  give  me  an  introduction  to 
Mr.  Louis  Kbhler. 

On  the  1st  April  I  shall  have  to  enter  on  my  duties  as  professor  at 
the  Conservatoire.     I  would  give  everything  in  the  world  to  be  able  to 

*  The  name  of  a  hotel. 

t  Mortier  de  Fontaine  (1816-1883),  a  soi-disant  Beethoven-player,  who  attained 
a  passing  celebrity  by  his  great  technique  and  also  tremendous  puffing.  We  are 
unable  to  state  what  principles  of  Mortier's  are  here  referred  to. 


BBESLAU — POSEN — BERLIN.  251 

set  myself  free  from  this  engagement,  which  promises  me  but  little  satis- 
faction. I  have  however  a  mission  to  fulfil  in  Berlin,  and  I  shall  use 
every  means  to  attain  my  object.  A  war  of  extermination  against 
"Mendelssohnianism";*  that  is  what  ought  now  to  be  the  most  pressing 
business  of  the  "coterie  Brendel."  In  regard  to  this  I  have  a  very 
urgent  request  to  submit  to  you.  I  read  the  other  day  Robert 
Schumann's  article  in  the  Neue  Zeitschrift  for  the  year  1837,  in  which  he 
draws  an  ignominious  parallel  between  the  '  Huguenots '  and  '  St.  Paul.' 
I  have  been  for  some  time  past  preparing  an  article  in  which  I  am 
delighting  to  avenge  somewhat  the  occasionally  mud-stained  poetry  of 
Meyerbeer,  of  the  unjust  respect  which  has  been  too  long  accorded  to 
the  impertinently-JoMT-^eotse  prose  of  Mendelssohn.  Not  even  the  fear 
that  Hoplit,  that  most  corruptible  man,  might  in  his  amour-propre 
proclaim  me  as  his  colleague,  will  be  an  obstacle  in  carrying  out  this 
project :  it,  however,  cannot  be  realised  unless  you  were  to  be  so  very 
kind  as  imperatively  to  authorise  my  article  in  embryo  to  "Tante 
Brendel."  t 

For  a  long  time  I  have  been  erroneously  thinking  that  you  had  left 
Weimar,  about  the  middle  of  January,  to  go  to  Vienna  or  I  know  not 
where.  I  think  I  remember  Ritter  having  spoken  to  me  of  this 
intention  on  your  part,  but  with  a  certain  amount  of  mystery.  I  cannot 
tell  you  how  I  feel  almost  tortured  by  the  longing  to  see  you  again  and 
to  kiss  your  hand.  I  hope  my  holidays  in  the  months  of  July  and 
August  will  enable  me  to  come  to  wherever  you  may  then  be,  if  you  will 
allow  it. 

I  shall  venture  to  submit  to  you  shortly  some  bagatelles  for  piano, 
which  are  going  to  be  published  at  Breslau,  and  in  which  your  indulgent 
eye  will  perhaps  note  a  little  progress,  if  you  bear  in  mind  the  individual 
difficulties  I  have  to  conquer  in  writing  for  your  instrument.  The  piano 
at  those  times  seems  to  evade  me,  and  becomes  intractable  when  I 
endeavour  to  express  my  ideas  on  it.  It  is  true  that  it  often  has  to  com- 
plain of  the  bad  treatment  it  receives  at  my  hands.  But  it  is  also  true 
that  the  thought  of  you,  when  it  is  vividly  and  persistently  before  anyone, 


•  It  should  be  clearly  understood  that  Billow's  antipathy,  which  is  here  so 
strongly  expressed,  is  directed,  not  so  much  against  [Mendelssohn  himself,  as  against 
the  immense  over-rating  of  his  works  which  was  at  that  time  so  much  in  fashion, 
and  which  especially  provoked  all  the  adherents  of  the  new  school  to  strong 
antagonism.  It  is  well  known  how,  in  later  years,  when  a  reaction  set  in,  and  the 
twer-estimation  had  changed  into  tituZ^r-estimation  of  Mendelssohn,  Billow  was 
constantly  to  the  fore  in  defence  of  the  Master  he  had  so  highly  honoured  in  his 
early  youth. 

t  Refers,  no  doubt,  to  Brendel's  paper. 


252  HANS  VON   BiJLOW. 

as  is  the  case  with  me,  tends  more  to  discourage  than  to  encourage  those 
who  believe  themselves  sufficiently  advanced  in  their  art  to  have  the 
right  to  admire  you. 

Might  the  great  politico-physical  event  which  has  just  taken  place  at 
St.  Petersburg  make  it  possible  to  suppose  that  those  matters  which  you 
have  most  deeply  at  heart  will  now  take  a  turn  more  favourable  to  your 
views  ?     Has  death  rendered  you  a  service  1 

I  hope  Raff  will  not  be  long  in  publishing  an  '  Ouverture  solennelle ' 
in  honour  of  the  accession  of  the  Emperor  Alexander,  and  I  shall  be 
delighted  to  see  the  admirable  counterpoint  with  which  he  will  adorn  the 
Bussian  Hymn, 

Excuse  what  I  have  now  to  tell  you.  There  is  a  certain  Mr.  Greulich, 
to  whom  we  especially  owe  it  that  we  have  done  such  bad  business,  and 
I  am  obliged  to  enlighten  you  a  little  about  him,  because  you  have  seen 
him  at  Weimar,  and  he  boasts  everywhere  that  he  corresponds  with  you, 
and  declares  that  he  possesses  brilliant  certificates  from  your  hand  about 
his  miserable  compositions.  He  has  been  trying  for  a  long  time  to  set 
himself  up  in  opposition  to  his  elder  brother  Mr.  Oswald  Greulich,  who 
is  not  an  especially  talented  man,  but  a  good  piano  teacher,  and  a  person 
whom  one  can  take  seriously.  The  fellow  has  not  yet  succeeded  in 
doing  this,  and  he  did  me  the  honour  to  select  me  as  the  victim  or 
stepping-stone  of  his  intrigues. 

He  took  the  initiative  in  a  correspondence  when  we  were  at  Breslau, 
by  begging  me  to  entrust  to  him  the  arrangements  of  our  concerts, 
promising  us  the  most  brilliant  success,  and  speaking  of  his  influence 
and  relations  with  the  Polish  aristocracy,  but  which  his  brother  in 
reality  possessed.  As  Mr,  Truhn  was  detained  at  Breslau  by  illness,  I 
set  out  alone  for  Posen,  Mr.  Greulich  having  mentioned  to  me  the  least 
propitious  day  in  the  week  as  the  most  favourable  for  a  first  concert.  I 
had  to  put  up  with  a  heap  of  disagreeables,  thanks  to  the  swaggering  and 
lies  of  this  gentleman,  who,  without  exaggeration,  ruined  our  chances  at 
Posen,  as  I  have  been  assured  by  the  most  competent  judges,  and  as  I 
found  by  my  own  experience.  Just  imagine  what  a  trick  he  played  me 
at  my  first  concert,  which  took  place  the  day  after  my  arrival :  he  took 
the  programme  I  had  dictated  to  him,  to  let  the  printer  have  it ;  and, 
without  letting  me  know  a  word  about  it,  he  added  to  it  some  of  his  own 
compositions.  He  had  brought  me  a  parcel  of  them  the  evening  before, 
and  I  had  had  the  weakness  to  correct  some  of  them  in  playing  them  to 
him.  As  a  pendant  to  what  I  have  told  you,  I  enclose  some  bits  of  the 
German  paper  in  which  Mr.  Greulich  endeavoured  to  throw  on  to  me  the 
mantle  of  ridicule  which  has  covered  his  own  shoulders  since  he  has  been 
at  Posen. 


BRESLAU—POSEN— BERLIN.  253 

Do  you  still  think  that  you  could  make  one  trial,  at  a  rehearsal,  of 
my  Fantasia  for  orchestra  ?  I  am  so  curious  to  see  whether  this  trial 
would  make  any  effect  whatever,  whether  disagreeable  or  flattering  ;  this 
latter  supposition  would,  however,  be  over-modest.* 

Sometimes  in  my  concerts  I  join  the  12th  Rhapsody  with  the  Frischka 
of  the  2nd  Rhapsody.  Truhn  compliments  me  every  time  on  the 
crescendo  I  bring  out,  which  often  carries  away  the  majority  of  the 
public.  The  Bach  Fugues,  which  you  transcribed  so  splendidly,  have 
been  most  useful  to  me  everywhere;  and  the  Schubert  Waltzes,  the 
Patineurs  and  the  Sonnambula  equally  so.  I  also  play  all  the  Chopin 
Nocturnes  which  have  not  been  too  much  drummed  into  our  ears  by 
Mesdames  Clauss  and  Schumann.  There  remain,  thank  Heaven, 
enough  '*  show-pieces  "  of  this  kind. 

Please  do  not  forget  me  on  your  side;  I  am  so  sensitive  to  the 
reproach  of  being  forgetful  that  I  am  trying  to  rid  myself  of  it  in  the 
greatest  haste. 

A  propos,  I  have  come  across  a  little  prodigy  here,  such  as  I  could 
never  have  imagined  to  exist.  It  is  the  son  of  a  precentor  at  the 
synagogue,  a  Mr.  Ketten  from  Hungary,  a  child  of  scarcely  seven  years 
of  age,  who  has  completely  stupified  me  by  his  remarkable  musical 
talent.  The  little  lad  reads  at  sight  anything  that  is  placed  before  him, 
and  plays  with  the  utmost  care  and  correctness  all  the  "  middle  parts  "  in 
the  most  complicated  compositions.  He  even  transposes  into  other  keys 
pieces  which  he  is  reading  for  the  first  time.  This  little  fellow  is  really 
interesting,  both  by  the  astonishing  agility  of  his  fingers,  which  seem 
made  for  the  piano,  and  by  his  marvellously  acute  ear.  He  can  tell  you 
the  most  out  of  the  way  chords  without  ever  making  a  mistake  in  a 
single  note,  even  when  one  plays  them  rapidly  one  after  another.  He 
can  even  classify,  and  give  the  technical  names  to,  the  harmonies  he 
hears.  I  played  him  the  first  bars  of  *  Prometheus,'  and  it  nearly  made  my 
hair  stand  on  end  to  hear  the  exactness  of  his  replies.  The  father,  to 
whom  I  am  constantly  preaching  not  to  "exploiter"  his  son,  wants  very 
much  to  bring  him  to  you  at  Weimar,  and  to  beg  you  to  allow  his 
musical  education  to  be  taken  in  hand  by  one  of  your  pupils.  Of  course 
it  would  be  impossible  to  place  such  an  exceptional  child  in  the 
Leipzig  or  Berlin  Conservatoire.  Mr.  Ketten  wants  very  much  to  know 
how  much  longer  you  expect  to  be  in  Weimar,  as  he  intends  first  to  go  to 
Berlin,  and  to  try  to  interest  Mr.  Paul  Mendelssohn,  or  possibly  even  the 
Government,  in  his  child,  in  order  to  obtain  pecuniary  assistance  for  him.+ 

*  As  the  composition  is  of  a  very  severe  character. 

t  Henri  Ketten,  born  1848  at  Baja  in  Hungary,  studied  at  the  Paris  Conservatoire, 
and  afterwards  made  a  brilliant,  if  passing,  success  as  a  virtuoso.  Died  in  1888. 
Wrote  many  effective  pieces  for  his  own  instrument,  besides  songs,  etc. 


254  HANS  VON   BULOW. 


TO  LOUIS  KOHLER. 

Berlin,  3rd  May  1855, 

Bbhrexstrassb,  4.  2nd  etage. 

Honoured  Sir, 

Whilst  in  Dantzig  and  still  in  hopes  (which,  as  you  know, 
I  had  to  relinquish)  of  visiting  Konigsberg,  and  of  making  the  acquaint- 
ance of  one  whose  writings  had  proved  him  to  me  so  worthy  a  companion- 
in-arms,  I  received  the  enclosed  letter  from  Dr.  Liszt,  which  introduces 
his  pupil,  but  also  very  likely  contains  special  information  for  his  friend. 
I  have  long  reproached  myself  with  keeping  these  lines  from  you,  and 
will  not  put  off  sending  them  any  longer. 

As  you  may  perhaps  have  heard,  I  am  now  officiating  as  Pianoforte 
teacher  at  the  old  Conservatoire  of  Messrs.  Marx  &  Stern,  as  successor  to 
Kullak. 

A  large  number  of  fresh  notifications  of  pupils  has  insured  the  con- 
tinuance of  the  institution.  In  spite  of  being  tied  here,  I  hope  never- 
theless to  come  next  winter  in  any  case  to  visit  the  birthplace  of  the 
composer  of  "The  last  days  of  Pompeii  ";*  and  if  possible  to  open  the 
concert-season  there. 

If  your  time  permitted,  I  should  very  much  like  to  enter  into 
correspondence  with  you.  Perhaps  there  may  be  a  hope  of  welcoming 
you  in  Berlin  for  the  performance  of  '  Tannhauser,'  which  is  to  take 
place,  at  last,  in  November. 

FRANZ  LISZT  TO  LOUIS  KOHLERt 

My  very  dear  Friend, 

Hans  von  Billow  will  bring  you  these  lines.  You  must 
enjoy  yourself  in  the  artist  who,  above  all  other  active  or  dying  out 
virtuosi,  is  the  dearest  to  me,  and  who  has,  so  to  speak,  grown  out  of  my 
musical  heart. — When  Hummel  heard  me  in  Paris  more  than  twenty- 
five  years  ago,  he  said,  "Der  Bursch  ist  ein  Eisenfresser  (the  fellow  is  a 
bravo)."  To  this  title,  which  was  very  flattering  to  me,  Hans  von  Biilow 
can  with  perfect  justice  lay  claim,  and  I  confess  that  such  an  extra- 
ordinarily gifted,  thorough-bred  musical  organism  as  his  has  never  come 
before  me. 

*  An  opei-a  by  Pabst. 

t  Liszt's  Letters,  edited  by  La  Mara,  translated  by  Constance  Bache.  Vol.  I. 
page  233.     (Grevel,  London.) 


BRESLAU — POSEN — BERLIN.  255 

Receive  him  as  an  approved  and  active  friend,  and  do  all  you  can  to 

make  his  stay  in  Kbnigsberg  a  pleasant  one. 

Yours  in  friendship, 

F.  Liszt. 
Weymar,  Mardi  16,  1855, 

The  following  extracts  from  letters  written  by  Franziska  to  her  daughter 
about  this  time  (Spring,  1855)  give  us  a  slight  sketch  of  the  kind  of  life  Hans 
was  leading  in  Berlin,  in  company  with  his  mother. 

"Hans  has  just  received  4  louis  d'or  for  his  latest  composition,  the  'Reverie 
fantastique,'  dedicated  to  the  Princess  of  Hohenzollern.  This  has  put  him 
into  a  somewhat  better  mood.  ...  I  wish  he  might  get  to  feel  at  home 
here  !  I  have  the  feeling  that  Berlin  might  become  a  home  to  us  ;  I  like  it 
so  much,  and  a  great  city  is  what  Hans  requires. 

.  .  .  God  grant  me  good  news  from  you,  and  grant  Hans  contentment 
and  plenty  of  lessons." 

"  On  Thursday  evening  there  was  a  party  at  Billow's.  Hans,  Madame 
Decker  (once  a  celebrated  singer)  and  Karl  Bronikowski  played  and  sang  duets 
from  Fidelio  and  Figaro  ;  Hans  accompanied,  and  also  played  alone,  to  people's 
admiration.  .  .  .  On  Saturday  Hans  intended  to  work  hard,  but  in  the 
evening  came  Herman  Grimm,  who  was  very  pleasant.  In  the  daytime  too 
come  numbers  of  callei-s,  mostly  young  people  ;  artists,  referendaries,  and 
people  who  are  just  passing  through,  as  Hans  has  so  many  acquaintances." 

"  Today  with  Countess  Bohlen  to  the  Exhibition,  where  there  is  a  beautiful 
show  of  pictures  for  the  benefit  of  the  sufferers  from  the  inundation.  Just 
listen  in  whose  company  I  found  myself  there  :  the  Prince  of  Prussia,  the 
Savignys,  Herr  van  Olfers,  old  Wrangel,  &c.  ;  je  vous  fais  grace  des  autres  ! 
Olfers  explained  everything  to  us  so  nicely  ;  but  I  lore  myself  away,  from  a 
sense  of  duty,  from  the  lovely  pictures  and  good  company,  and  jumped  into  a 
carriage,  as  Hans  and  lunch  were  waiting  ;  then  came  Ernst,  Fraulein  Grenast 
from  Weimar,  &c.  At  the  present  moment  I  am  at  my  writing-table ;  this 
evening  I  go  to  a  concert  given  by  a  couple  of  Frenchmen,  singers,  and  at 
which  Hans  plays.  That  is  how  one  lives  in  Berlin.  Hans  gets  into  pickles 
again  after  his  own  fashiom." 

Berlin,  25th  May  1855. 

"  Meanwhile  things  have  gone  quite  well  here  also.  I  don't  know  if  I 
have  already  told  you  that  Hans  had  an  invitation  from  the  Duchess  of  Sagan, 
to  pay  her  a  visit  of  3  days  on  the  29th,  during  the  stay  of  the  Princess  of 
Prussia  at  Sagan.  He  accepted  :  meanwhile  he  receives,  on  Sunday,  a  letter 
from  Amalie  Sternberg,  the  governess  to  the  Princess  of  Prussia's  daughter 
who  has  just  been  confirmed  here.  This  letter  was  to  ask  Hans  to  give  her  a 
lesson  every  day  during  her  short  stay  here.  So  he  now  goes  daily  from  11  to 
12,  and  he  much  likes  going  among  the  very  highest  families.  Not  that  it 
specially  impresses  him,  but  it  puts  him  in  a  good  humour.    In  other  respects 


256  HANS  VON  BiJLOW. 

he  is  working  hard  with  composing  and  arranging,  and  has  but  little  spare 
time.  He  is  now  received  everywhere  with  distinction,  and  begins  to  be 
regarded  as  a  star  of  the  first  magnitude.  With  all  this  he  can  be  charming 
when  he  will,  and  seems  to  have  grown  much  more  reasonable." 


TO  HIS  SISTER. 

Sagan,  30^^  May  1855. 

My  dear  Sister, 

I  wrote  to  you  lately  to  Paris,  and  you  have  also  doubtless 
received  my  letter.  It  is  quite  my  turn  to  write  to  you  again  before  I 
can  receive  an  answer,  for  you  have  often  done  just  the  same  to  me. 
And  I  have  today  moreover  something  new — low  be  it  spoken — some- 
thing good  to  tell  you. 

Since  yesterday  I  have  been  here  with  the  Duchess  of  Sagan,  who 
had  sent  me  an  invitation  to  visit  her  that  I  might  have  the  opportunity 
of  being  presented  to  the  Prince  and  Princess  of  Prussia,  and  might  play 
to  them.  This  introduction  had  in  the  meantime  already  taken  place  in 
Berlin.  At  the  beginning  of  last  week  I  suddenly  received  a  communi- 
cation from  Fraulein  Am^lie  v.  Sternberg,  asking  me,  at  the  wish  of  the 
Princess,  to  give  a  few  music-lessons  to  the  young  Princess  Louise, 
to  whom  she  is  governess.  So  this  came  to  pass.  My  royal  pupil, 
who  had  come  to  Berlin  for  her  confirmation,  is  now,  alas,  returning 
to  Coblence,  and  the  pleasure — for  such  it  was,  because  the  young 
Princess  has  really  beautiful  musical  talent,  and  is  a  very  amiable 
charming  creature — this  pleasure,  I  say,  was  of  very  short  duration. 
Still  there  is  a  prospect  of  the  Princess  coming  to  Berlin  next  winter  for 
a  longer  time,  and  then  I  alone  shall  be  chosen  for  her  piano-teacher 
again.  The  Princess-mother — whose  appearance,  by  the  way,  reminds 
me  very  much  of  Frau  von  Liittichau — has  overwhelmed  me  with  kind- 
ness. Only  last  Saturday  she  arranged  a  matinee  in  my  honour,  because 
she  thought  "  I  was  still  too  little  known  in  Berlin,  and  that  it  would 
make  me  better  known."  To  this  matinde  she  invited  a  great  number 
of  Royalties  and  their  suites,  also  artistic  magnates  such  as  Meyerbeer, 
the  Court-painter  Hensel,  &c.  So  I  played  the  piano  a  great  deal,  and 
played  altogether  an  important  and  pleasant  part. 

I  came  hither  yesterday  morning  from  Berlin  by  the  same  train  as 
the  Prince  of  Prussia,  etc.,  and  shall  probably  return  there  tomorrow 
by  a  special  train  (part  way).  For  the  past  eight  days  I  have  been 
living  as  if  at  Court,  attending,  of  course,  all  their  breakfasts  and 
dinners,  &c.  The  Duchess  is  extremely  agreeable ;  the  sojourn  splendid. 
A  castle  of  rare  beauty  and  grandeur,  a  wonderful  and  immense  park, 


BRESLAU — POSEN — BERLIN.  257 

charming  visitor's  apartments  for  me,  where  everything  is  arranged  for 
the  greatest  comfort.  Drives  in  Court  carriages;  this  evening  a 
theatrical  performance  at  the  Castle ;  illuminations ;  these  are  the 
exceptional  diversions  which  one  likes  sometimes  as  a  change.  I  do  not 
speak  of  the  mentis y  they  could  only  be  mentioned  with  reverential  awe. 
I  should  like  to  live  like  that  all  my  life !  In  the  evenings,  alas,  I  have 
to  endure  great  torture — in  trying  to  bring  out  from  a  villainous  old 
grand-piano  (which  is  unfortunately  considered  very  valuable  by  its 
possessor)  strains  which  shall  sound  as  little  as  possible  like  caterwauling. 
If  I  could  only  have  more  assurance,  and  were  not  deceived  by  the  idea 
that  the  audience  is  as  musical  as  myself,  and  as  unpleasantly  moved  by 
sticking  and  discordant  notes  as  I  am !  But  after  the  experience  of 
yesterday  I  intend,  if  I  am  asked  to  play  again  to-day,  to  pound  the  old 
tin-kettle  quite  boldly  and  pitilessly  as  regards  myself,  and  with  such 
self-possession  that  at  the  fortissimi  no  one  can  hear  his  own  voice, 
and  at  the  piani  no  one  can  hear  any  sound  at  all ! 

The  theatre  begins  in  half-an-hour ;  the  Duchess  has  been  obliged  to 
engage  a  dramatic  company  from  Glogau.  I  am  afraid  it  will  be  very 
bad,  and  yet  not  bad  enough  to  be  amusing. 

I  have  had  such  numerous  and  repeated  calls  in  Berlin  from  people — 
chiefly,  of  course,  musicians  by  profession,  whom  I  got  to  know  while 
travelling — that  I  have  been  very  idle,  and  have  accomplished  but  little 
of  all  the  work  I  had  planned.  But  that  shall  be  changed  on  my 
return,  even  should  the  weather  continue  as  fine  as  now. 

These  late  occurrences  delight  Mamma  in  truth  more  than  they  do 
me.  Till  now  they  have  cost  me  more  than  I  can  hope  to  gain  by  them  ! 
I  only  wish  there  may  be  a  reaction  and  an  after-eflFect  of  them  in  Berlin, 
so  that  I  may  rise  in  the  estimation  of  the  better  portion  of  the  public, 
and  that  some  people  may  wish  to  learn  from  me  in  consequence. 


The  sketch  of  Hans  von  Biilow's  youth,  which  these  pages  are  designed  to 
give,  cannot  be  better  concluded  than  by  his  mother's  own  words.  None  of 
the  young  artist's  earlier  victories  had  been  so  hard,  none  so  important,  alike 
to  his  inner  peace  of  mind  and  to  the  further  development  of  his  powers  and 
his  character,  as  the  complete  conquest  of  the  prejudice  which  she  had  always 
maintained,  up  to  the  present  time,  against  his  chosen  career  as  an  artist ;  a 
prejudice  which  had  its  origin  in  her  deep  parental  solicitude.  Whereas 
Frau  von  Biilow  had  written  to  her  daughter  only  a  year  ago  from  Dresden, 
"  I  comprehend  less  and  less  how  this  artist's  life  can  and  does  satisfy  him  " — 
she  now  sums  up  her  impressions  in  the  following  words  : 

"  Hans  has  played  perfectly,  his  tones  float  ethereally  upwards,  and  his 

B 


258  HANS  VON  BULOW. 

conceptions  and  their  realisation  form  a  drama.  He  knows  how,  both  by  look 
and  tone,  to  keep  the  public  in  rapt  attention,  hardly  daring  to  breathe,  till  at 
the  conclusion  they  break  out  into  a  storm  of  applause.  In  this  power,  which 
he  exercises  over  his  audience,  he  finds  the  charm  of  playing  in  public.  The 
faintest  dying  breath  in  Chopin's  Nocturne  was  at  once  audible  in  the  most 
distant  corner  of  the  crowded  hall.  With  quiet,  distinguished  deportment  he 
bows  slowly  with  complete  unconcern,  then  carelessly  places  first  one  hand 
and  then  the  other  on  the  keys  and  begins.  Whether  the  tones  now  roll 
forth  in  the  wildest  storm,  so  that  one  would  imagine  an  orchestra  playing, 
whether  they  are  now  heard  in  the  most  pearling  runs,  or  die  away  like  the 
most  beautiful  human  voices  in  the  purest  azure,  there  is  always  the  same 
composure,  the  most  finished  beauty,  the  complete  mastery  of  thought  shown  : 
there  one  learns  to  comprehend  what  Tone-colour  means.  It  is  indeed  a  trans- 
cendent talent !  Something  supernatural !  May  he  at  last  win  recognition 
and  a  position  worthy  of  him.  Franziska  v.  Bulow." 


THE   END. 


INDEX 


INDEX. 


.fflschylus,  77. 
Alberti,  237. 
Aristophanes,  97. 

Arnim,  von,  Bettina,  and  Gisel,  181. 
Araims,  von,  123,  124,  125,  126,  127,  128, 
130,  131,  133,  148,  161,  188,  224,  239. 
Ascher,  29. 
Auber,  13,  58,  214. 
Anerbach,  12. 
Augusz,  von,  154,  160. 


Bach,  10,  11,  12,  19,  109,  141,  146,  160, 
166,  202,  207,  221,  223,  232,  238,  239, 
241,  253. 

Balzac,  146,  149. 

Banck,  198. 

Baranowski,  210,  212,  215. 

Bargiel,  231. 

Basse,  21. 

Bauer,  213,  232,  238. 

Bauemfeld,  145. 

Bayer-Burk,  148,  150,  185. 

Beaulieu,  104. 

Beck,  161. 

Beerenmayer,  238. 

Beethoven,  10,  11,  12,  18,  19,  29,  33,  40, 
46,  47,  57,  66,  72,  77,  86,  93,  96,  99, 
102,  103,  106,  107,  111,  112,  116,  132, 
146,  153,  158,  160,  175,  182,  190,  192, 
202,  221,  223,  230,  234,  238,  250. 

Bellini,  9. 

Benedict,  18. 

Bennett,  Stemdale,  176. 


Berlancourt,  132. 

Berlioz,  30,  103,  109,  111,  112,  119,  123, 
131,  166,  172,  174,  175,  181,  186,  197, 
198,  199,  200,  201,  203,  204,  211,  216, 
218,  223,  224,  226,  229. 
Bernstorff,  Countess,  186. 
Bertini,  11. 
Bessali^,  207. 
Birch-Pfeiffer,  13. 
Blassmann,  200. 
Bluntschli,  48. 
Bohlen,  Countess,  255. 
Bohrer,  18. 
Boie,  189,  191. 
Bote  and  Bock,  230,  233. 
Brahms,  176,  187,  189,  192. 
Brandus,  203,  204,  218. 
Breitkopf  and  Hartel,  see  Hiirtel, 
Brendel,  88,  92,  97,  99, 107,  110,  127,  176, 

200,  251. 
Brockhaus,  98. 
Bronikowski,  255. 
Biilow,  von — 

, ,        Ernst  Heinrich  Adolph,  3. 
„        Carl  Eduard,  3,  4,  5,  17,  39, 
45,   66,  68,  77,  106,  184, 
165. 
,,        Franziska  (StoU),  3,  4,  5,  39, 
42,  49,  52,  134,  142,  247, 
255,  257,  258. 
,,        Charlotte,  236. 
,,        Ernst,  39,  68,  76,  77, 106,  134, 
185,  228,  230,  236,  256. 
Paul,  39. 


262 


INDEX. 


Billow,  von,  Isidora,  4,  39,  53,  57,  72,  73, 
75,  87,  111,  113,  117,  118, 
133,  134, 145,  153, 167,  174, 
185,  188,  190, 191,  213,  217, 
235,  236. 
Biilow-Dennewitz,  Count  von,  3,  39,  207. 
„  „  Louise,  3,   5,   39,   62, 

115,  122,  126,  133, 
151,  168,  169,  182, 
188. 
„  „  Wmi,59,  61,  115,  121, 

122,  133,  168,  169. 
„  „  Heinz,  133. 

Buonaparte,  238. 
Buttendorf,  248. 
Byron,  35,  104,  210. 

Calderon,  236. 

Caravaggio,  218. 

Carus,  41,  158,  175. 

Cherubini,  31,  104,  120. 

Chopin,  10,  11,  18,  27,  29,  86,  91,  95,  111, 

158,  175,  176,  209,  221,  223,  241,  249, 

253,  258. 
Chungakai,  154. 
Clapisson,  205. 
Clauss-Szarvady,  191,  253. 
Clementi,  11. 

Cornelius,  124,  148,  172,  176,  181,  236. 
Cossman,  82,  94,  106,  112,  113. 
Cramer,  11. 
Crelinger,  10. 
Czartoryska,  Princess,  216. 
Czerny,  11,  12,  19,  95,  175,  211. 
Czertaheli,  88. 

Dachs,  141, 146. 

Dardenne,  71. 

David,  30,  101,  112,  127,  129,  131,  182, 

183,  184,  200,  218. 
Dawison,  145,  199. 
Decker,  255. 
Dehn,  236. 
Dido,  205. 
Diethelm,  71. 

Dietrichstein,  Prince,  139,  153. 
Dingelstedt,  83. 
Dohler,  27,  211,  226. 
Dohm,  237. 
DonhofT,  Countess,  229. 


Donniges,  248,  249. 

Doppler,  154. 

Draseke,  210,  213,  216,  239. 

Dreyschock,  144,  145,  146,  148,  150,  153, 

154. 
Duncker,  190. 
Dzialynski,  248,  249. 

Eberweiu,  5,  11. 
Eck,  229. 
Eckermann,  108. 
Enslen,  9. 
Erard,  185. 
Erdody,  147. 
Erkel,  153,  154. 
Eyth,  see  Pohl. 

Fastlinger,  110. 

Fechner,  28,  128. 

Festetics,  Count,  147,  148,  152,  154,  157. 

Feuerbach,  72,  120,  242. 

Field,  11. 

Fischer,  184,  199. 

Fischhoff,  141,  145,  146. 

Flathe,  28,  105. 

Florian,  10. 

Flotow,  13,  71,  91,  110. 

Fontaine,  Mortier  de,  250. 

Foyatier,  218. 

Frank,  238. 

Frankl,  106. 

Franz,  31,  92,  97,  114,  119,  124. 

Frege,  Kammerrath,  3,  25. 

,,       Woldemar,  3,  6,  25,  27,  28. 

„       Livia  (Gerhardt),   6,   10,    12,   25, 
26,  27,  29,  30,  31,  191. 

,,       Arnold,  25,  27. 

„      Friedrich,  27,  28. 
Fiirst,  235. 

Gade,  30,  127. 

Gall,  von,  41,  172. 
Ganz,  181. 
Genast,  96,  98,  255. 
G^ricault,  218. 
Gervinus,  105,  211. 
Geyer,  40,  41. 
Glasbrenner,  189. 
Gluck,  104,  122,  166,  198. 
Gliick,  see  Paoli. 


INDEX. 


263 


Goethe,  83,  106,  108. 
Goethe,  Ottilie  von,  34. 
Goldschmidt,  11,  12. 
Goltermann,  84. 
Grahn,  108. 
Greith,  65. 
Greulich,  252. 
Grevel,  254. 
Griepenkerl,  40. 
Grillparzer,  150. 
Grimm,  255. 
Gros,  218. 
Grote,  von,  185. 
Griineisen,  19. 
Guerlain,  218. 
Gulomy,  72. 
Gumprecht,  233. 
Guttentag,  243. 
Gutzkow,  169. 

Hackstadt,  9. 

Hahnel,  175,  200. 

Hahn-Hahn,  Countess,  3. 

Halm,  see  Miinch-Bellinghausen. 

Harder,  de,  176. 

Harless,  30,  31. 

Hartel,  29,  86,  101,  122,  127,  200,  243. 

Haslinger,  109,  130,  139,  144,  151. 

Haupt,  28. 

Hauptmann,  10,  12,  29,  31,  121. 

Haydn,  99. 

Heine,  97,  121,  187. 

Heinefetter,  166. 

Heinrich,  18,  21. 

Heller,  29. 

Hensel,  256. 

Henselt,  4,  5,  10,  11,  95,  207. 

Herbort,  61,  63,  71,  72. 

Herder,  von,  42,  117,  120,  133,  134. 

Hermann,  Prince,  87. 

Hermann,  28. 

Herwegh,  114. 

Herzfeld,  146. 

Hesse,  9,  207. 

Hillebrand,  {nie  Laussot),  5,  216,  239,  240. 

HUler,  13,  183. 

Hindenburg,  von,  248. 

Hinze,  110. 

Hohenzollem,  Princess  of,  255. 

Holstein,  Princess  of,  118. 


Holpit,  see  Pohl. 

Hotspur,  Percy,  237. 

Hoven,  109. 

Howard,  30. 

Hiilsen,  229. 

Hummel,  10,  11,  19,  216,  254. 

Hunerfiirst,  208,  236. 

Hunyadi,  148,  155,  158,  159. 

Irmler,  12. 

Jager,  21. 

Jenisch,  191,  193. 

Joachim,  12,  82,  83,  86,  88,  91,  94,  106, 
107,  109,  111,  112,  123,  124,  125,  126^ 
127,  128,  153,  166,  170,  172,  174,  176, 
181,  183,  184,  185,  186,  188,  190,  192, 
193,  202,  215,  221,  229,  232,  234,  235, 
236,  237,  238. 

Jouvin,  218. 

Joy,  213,  218,  223. 

Julien,  218. 

Kahnt,  187. 

Kalliwoda,  165,  166.  176. 

Kamie6ska,  Countess,  203,  209,  212,  214, 

215,  221,  223,  224,  229,  231,  234,  236, 

248. 
Karktsonyi,  154. 
Keller,  48. 
Ketten,  253. 
Kisting,  227,  229. 
Kistner,  34,  101,  127,  129. 
Klein,  234. 
Klemm,  12. 
Klengel,  11,  128. 
Klind  worth,  171,  181,  192. 
Kohler,  250,  254, 
Koib,  193,  229. 
Konneritz,  139. 
Kontski,  222. 
Kbrner,  4. 
Komiloff,  216. 
Kossak,  232,  235. 
Kramer,  57,  60. 
Krebs,  175,  193,  199. 
Kreutzer,  9. 
KroU,  120,  229. 
Kriiger,  18. 
Kuhn,  18. 


264 


INDEX. 


Kuhmstedt,  111. 

Kullak,  29,  42,  57,  232,  233,  235,  238,  254. 

Kummer,  176. 


Lachner,  83,  189. 

Lacombe,  191. 

La  Mara,  254. 

Langer,  119. 

Laub,  181. 

Laube,  96,  145. 

Laussot,  see  Hillebrand. 

Lehr,  21. 

Leiningen,  Count,  172. 

Lemaistre,  216. 

Lenhard,  von,  147. 

Levy,  203. 

Lewald,  82,  83,  133. 

Liebig,  230,  232,  236. 

Linanges,  Count  de,  175. 

Lind,  108,  176,  185. 

Lindpaintner,  18,  20. 

Lipinski,  10,  72,  154,  198,  199,  204,  216, 
221,  222. 

Liszt,  Franz,  5,  13,  19,  32,  33,  34,  35,  42, 
48,  51,  52,  56,  57,  62,  63,  66,  67,  70, 
72,  75,  76,  77,  81,  82,  84,  85,  86,  87, 
88,  89,  91,  92,  93,  94,  95,  96,  97,  98, 
99,  100,  101,  102,  103,  104,  105,  106, 
107,  108,  109,  110,  111,  112,  113,  114, 
115,  116,  117,  118,  119,  120,  121,  122, 
123,  125,  126,  127,  128,  129,  130,  131, 
132,  133,  134,  135,  139,  140,  141,  142, 
143,  144,  147,  148,  149,  151,  152,  153, 
154,  155,  156,  157,  158,  160,  165,  166, 
167,  168,  170,  171,  172,  173,  174,  181, 
182,  183,  184,  185,  186,  188,  197,  201, 
202,  203,  205,  206,  207,  214,  221,  223, 
224,  228,  229,  230,  233,  235,  238,  239, 
242,  243,  249,  250,  254,  255. 

Liszt,  Eduard,  140,  143,  144. 

Litolff,  12,  13,  19,  36,  40,  41,  87,  94,  121, 
147,  183,  200. 

Lobe,  110. 

Lortzing,  63. 

Lowy,  140,  144. 

Liihrss,  243. 

Lully,  19. 

Luttichau,  von,  3,  101,  133,  141,  145,  154, 
174,  175,  184,  198, 199,  256. 


Macchiavelli,  226,  237. 

Mangold,  113. 

Mangolt,  von,  104. 

Marastoni,  159. 

Marpurg,  230. 

Marschner,  104, 185. 

Marx,  229,  233,  234,  235,  237,  238,  249, 

254. 
Marxen,  189. 
Mayer,  10,  19,  48,  176. 
Mayer- Wordmiiller,  60. 
Mecklenburg,  Prince  of,  235. 
M^hul,  20,  58. 
Mendelssohn,  6,  11,  19,   20,   30,   66,   83, 

101,  112,  146,  166,  190, 

191,  243,  251. 
„  Paul,  253. 

Meser,  173,  240. 
Meyerbeer,  66,  74,  120,  229,  234,  236,  251, 

256. 
MQanollo,  145,  148,  152. 
Milde,  von,  105,  109,  120,  187. 
Mirabeau,  218. 
Moleschott,  241. 
Moli^re,  10,  205. 
Molique,  17,  18,  19,  20,  21. 
Montenuovo,  Count,  147. 
Moritz,  83. 

Moscheles,  11,  29,  30,  101. 
Mosewius,  207. 

Mozart,  18,  31,  36,  59,  66,  99,  176. 
Miiller,  12,  121. 

Miinch-Bellinghausen,  Freilierr  von,  148. 
Murillo,  218. 
Musset,  de,  216,  243. 

Mycielski,  Count,  202,  203,  207,  208,  212, 
215,  220,  238,  248. 
„         Daughters,  211,  217,  239. 

Napier,  239. 

Napoleon,  12,  140,  218,  242. 

Naumann,  232. 

Nehse,  120. 

Nero,  205. 

Noels,  133. 

Olfers,  255. 

Orleans,  Duchess  of,  112. 

Pabst,  254. 


INDEX. 


265 


Paesiello,  19. 

Paganini,  202. 

Pallavicini,  147. 

Paoli,  145,  149. 

Patersi,  223. 

Petersen,  191. 

Petofy,  121. 

Pepita,  192. 

Piccini,  19. 

Pixis,  224. 

Plaidy,  11,  12. 

Platen,  Count,  184,  185. 

Plater,  Count,  220. 

Plutarch,  106. 

Pogwisch,  von,  34. 

Pohl,  165,  166,  175,  193,  200,  204,  205, 

225,  227,  251. 
Potocka,  Countess,  213. 
Potworowski,  Count,  226. 
Proudhon, 65,  132. 
Pruckner,  120,  170,  172,  181. 
Prume,  13. 
Prussia,  Prince  of,  235,  255,  256. 

, ,      Prince  Friedrich,  235. 

,,      Prince  George,  235,  236. 

„       Princess  of,  255,  256. 

,,      Princess  Louise,  256. 
Puttkamer,  von,  248,  250. 

Rachel,  41. 

Racine,  10. 

Radecke,  127,  129. 

RaflF,  17,  20,  29,  32,  33,  49,  81,  82,  83,  84, 

86,  88,  90,  91,  106,  118,  120,  170,  176, 

181,  186,  202,  225,  252. 
Raphael,  218. 
Rathgeber,  29. 

Redern,  Count,  181,190,  221,  229, 235,236. 
Reissiger,  95,  110,  175,  198,  199. 
Rellstab,  106, 186,  227,  229,  230,  232,  236. 
Rem^nyi,  176,  183. 
Reuss,  12. 
Ridley-Kohne,  155. 
Rietz,  27,  30. 
Ritter,  Frau,  5,  99,  173. 

„      Alexander  and  Carl,  5,  6,  20,  27, 

29,  30,  46,  48,  49,  51,  53,  54, 

56,  58,  61,  72,  100,  107,  110, 

173,  176,  200,  203,  239,  240, 

■     243,  251. 


Ritmiiller,  185,  193. 

Robespierre,  218. 

Rockel,  83. 

Roger,  97,  236. 

Ronisch,  211. 

Rubinstein,  202. 

Russia,  Emperor  Alexander  of,  252. 

Sagan,  Duchess  of,  255,  256. 

Saphir,  150. 

Savigny,  255. 

Saxony,  King  of,  205. 

Saxe-Weimar,  Grand  Duchess  Luise,  34. 

SchaefiFer,  243. 

Scheuten,  20. 

Schiedmayer,  18,  21. 

SchiUer,  19,  70. 

Schlegel,  90,  96. 

Schletter,  128. 

Schlesinger,  221,  226,  227,  228. 

Schmidtgen,  9. 

Schmiedel,  5. 

Schnabel,  207. 

Schneider,  119. 

Schopenhauer,  243. 

Schott,  217. 

Schreck,  120. 

Schreiber,  208,  213,  214,  220,  222. 

Schubert,  91,  176,  183,  199,  258. 

Schuberth,  191,  193. 

Schumann,  27,  33,  72,  74,  83,  86,  95,  96, 

97,  99,  104,  109,  176,  183, 

187,  192,  251. 
„         Clara,  10,  215,  221,  229,  230, 

231,  232,  234,  235,  237,  239, 

247,  253. 
Schurig,  223. 
Schwarzbach,  30. 
Schwendler,  von,  84,  123. 
Senff,  127,  243. 
Shakespeare,  28,  95,  96. 
Siegsfeld,  von,  117,  118,  120. 
Singer,  153,  175,  200. 
Soest,  105. 
Solmar,  39. 

Sontag,  104,  107,  108,  114,  185. 
Sonpper,  von,  214. 
Speidel,  72,  84,  188,  189. 
Spener,  233. 
Spina,  142,  175. 


266 


^ 


INDEX. 


Spohr,  104,  119,  183,  185,  193,  201,  207. 

Spontini,  104,  229. 

Stable wski,  von,  217,  220,  226. 

Stahr,  82,  83,  97,  113,  231,  232. 

Steibelt,  11. 

St.  Fargeau,  219. 

Stern,  119,  235,  236,  237,  254. 

Sternau,  121,  187. 

Sternberg,  255,  256. 

Stigelli,  58. 

Stimbrand,  154. 

Stockhausen,  139. 

Stoltz,  205,  206. 

Stoltzenberg,  Baron,  145. 

Stbr,  33,  34,  98. 

Storch,  236. 

Strauss,  41,  146,  151,  226, 

Streicher,  155. 

Sulkowski,  Prince,  215,  220,  226,  227. 

Szarvady,  121,  191. 

Talleyrand,  123. 

Tarido,  219. 

Taylor,  see  Hillebrand. 

Thalberg,  29,  72,  152. 

Thode,  27,  192. 

Thun,  139. 

Tieck,  3,  87,  99,  187,  221,  228. 

Titian,  218. 

Tomaschek,  155. 

Toros  Janos,  155. 

Trautwein,  243. 

Truhn,  185,  229,  232,  234,  247,  249,  250. 

252,  253. 
Tyszkiewicz,  227,  230. 

Uhlig,  92,  96,  107,  109,  129,  187. 
Ulrich,  236. 
Ungar,  154,  155. 

Vamhagen,  39. 


Verdi,  151. 

Vernet,  218. 

Vieuxtemps,  231. 

Virgil,  205. 

Vivier,  23-2. 

Volkmann,  158,  160,  186. 

Voltaire,  10,  218,  242. 

Wachsmuth,  28. 

Wagner,  Richard,  5,  20,  30,  32,  35,  45, 
46,  47,  49,  52,  53,  54,  56,  57, 
58,  59,  60,  61,  62,  63,  67,  68, 
69,  70,  71,  72,  75,  83,  85,  87, 
88,  90,  96,  97,  101,  103,  104, 
105,  106,  107,  109,  110,  112, 
114,  122,  123,  172,  173,  182, 
198,  199,  202,  225,  236,  243. 
„  Johanna,  203,  212,  226,  227,  229, 
230,  232,  234,  236,  237. 
Wallner,  249. 

Weber,  18,  19,  27,  66,  104,  111,  132,  146. 
Weisse,  28,  128. 
Wieck,  17,  87,  176. 
,,      Marie,  175. 
Wieniawski,  222. 
Will,  166. 
Willmers,  211,  226. 
Winterberger,  33. 

Wittgenstein,  Princess,  33,  81,  172,  200, 
223. 
„  Princess    Marie,    123,    133 

172. 
„  Eugen,  172. 

Wodzicki,  Count  de,  220,  226. 
Wrangel,  255. 
Wiirtemberg,  Princess  Auguste  of,  87. 

Zedlitz,  von,  152. 
Ziegesar,  von,  96,  104. 
Zimmermann,  229. 
Zischek,  9.  ^ 


PRINTED  AT  THE  KDINBUROH  PRESS,  9  AND  H  VOUNG  STREET. 


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and  gossipy  person,  for  he  considers  their  problems  in  a 
large,  impersonal  way  like  a  wise  man;  and  he  finds  that 
he  is  not  too  great  to  be  benefited  by  these  little  things, 
for  life  has  a  pleasant  taste  and  the  little  things  make  life. 

Some  of  us  cannot  settle  down  to  work,  because  we  are 
forever  fretting  about  opportunity,  dashing  madly  to  the 
door  to  see  if  she  has  knocked,  tangling  our  skein  and 
making  a  mess  of  things,  chasing  uncertainty.  Opportunity 
is  a  giver  of  strange  gifts,  often  of  doubtful  value. 

Let  us  seize  the  tangible.  Our  distant  valley  is  serene 
and  wide  awake,  our  work  is  of  a  pleasant  kind  and  not 
too  much  of  it.  We  are  not  likely  to  gain  riches  or  notoriety, 
neither  are  we  so  poor  that  we  are  impaled  upon  unpaid 
bills  and  overdue  rents.  We  are  not  having  to  club  our- 
selves constantly  before  the  public  to  keep  from  sinking 
out  of  sight  upon  the  shores  of  nonentity.  We  have  time 
to  make  marginal  notes  as  we  study  life's  great  book,  and 
the  experience  we  gain  in  our  valley  passes  current  every- 
where. Joy  comes  by  contrast,  and  it  seems  that  some  of 
us  have  been  sighing  for  a  three-room  flat  with  a  folding 
bed  and  a  fire  escape  in  which  to  be  miserable. 

Our  first  duty  is  to  do  our  work  well;  even  our  remote- 
ness will  not  serve  to  cover  up  helter-skelter  teaching  and 
playing.  The  road  that  leads  through  our  valley  disappears 
over  the  hill  crest  and  loses  itself  in  the  market-place. 
Some  one  is  always  setting  out  upon  this  road  and  carrying 
our  work  downward  into  the  cities.  Our  heart  flows  out 
after  it,  our  hopes,  longings,  and  desires  are  wrapped  up 
in  it;  our  work  must  be  very  good  to  stand  out  in  the  over- 
crowded marts  of  men.  It  is  the  thought  of  the  market- 
place that  keeps  us  from  stagnating  and  sinking-  into  the 
murky  depths  of  inactivity. 

Some  of  us  give  lessons  as  though  we  were  going  to  war, 
our  studios  are  veritable  battle-fields  strewn  with  lacerated 
feelings.  There  is  a  striking  difference  between  the 
teacher  who  is  absorbed  only  by  the  hard,  bare  facts  of 
the  lesson  and  the  one  who  turns  a  desert  into  a  flower 
garden  and  puts  atmosphere  and  sky  behind  the  printed 
symbols.  The  line  that  separates  the  real  from  the  ideal 
is  an  invisible  one,  the  real  is  as  intimately  related  to  the 
ideal  as  the  seed  to  the  flower. 

Children  at  school  learn  their  lessons  by  the  sound  of 
the  gong  and  the  stroke  of  the  bell,  and  being  in  or  out  of 
line  often  overtops  being  in  or  out  of  a  recitation.  We 
cannot  march  our  pupils  through  a  music  lesson  to  the 
tick  of  the  metronome  or  the  tap  of  the  pencil  without  in 
time  smothering  the  ideal  that  is  wrapped  up  like  a  cocoon, 
in  every  child.  We  need  not  lose  one  pennyweight  of  our 
authority  by  giving  the  child  a  chance  to  be  himself,  for 
much  that  he  learns  is  not  printed  on  the  page  at  all,  it 
slips  in  between  and  is  often  the  best  part.  A  music  lesson 
is  full  of  surprises;  one  can  never  tell  from  the  outside  what 
is  going  on  inside;  the  most  picturesque,  bewildering  and 
oftentimes  informing  things  come  out  unexpectedly. 

Our  Lorelei  would  have  us  believe  that  possibility  and 
success  lie  outside  the  valley,  in  the  world  below,  and  those 


3Y  RAFF 


VON  BULOW'S  LETTERS 


BY   FREOERIC   S.   LAW 


I     The  seventh  and  probably  last  volume  of  Hans  von 

! Billow's  letters  has  recently  been  published  by  Breitkopf 

&   Haertel.     They  are  edited  by  Marie   von  Biilow,  the 

writer's  second  wife,  who  has  added  many  explanatory 

and  biographical  details  which  greatly  increase  the  interest 

u>f  the  book.     There  is  much  of  permanent  value  in  this 

>  nrhole  series  of  volumes,  which  begins  with  letters  written 

pt  an  early  age  and  ends  with  one  bearing  the  date  of 

J^ovember  17,  1893,  at  Cairo,  Egypt,  where  he  died  less 

|han  three  months  later,  February  12,  1894;  much  that 

/will  serve  the  historian  in  recording  the  musical  events  of 

■  that   extraordinary   period   which   began   with   Wagner's 

first  works  for  the  stage  and  ended  with  Richard  Strauss's 

early  symphonic  poems,  as  well  as  much  that  is  purely 

personal,  but  none  the  less  interesting  in  casting  a  sharply 

illuminating  light  on  a  character  surely  one  of  the  most 

remarkable  of  the  musicians  who  distinguished  his  era. 

Born  in  Dresden  January  8,  1830,  he  was  delicate  as  a 
child  and  as  a  man  never  knew  robust  health.  His 
natural  bent  to  sarcasm  and  cynicism  was  no  doubt  in- 
tensified by  ill  health,  as  well  as  by  the  unkind  fate  which 
so  persistently  destroyed  his  domestic  happiness.     While 

tyet  young  continual  dissension  between  his  parents  dis- 
„  turbed  the  household,  and  when  they  finally  separated 
the  boy's  sympathies  were  with  his  father,  whom  he  elected 
to  follow,  though  not  without  a  severe  strain  to  his  feelings. 
The  tragic  story  of  his  later  life — his  marriage  to  Liszt's 
daughter   Cosima,   his   ardent   friendship   with   Wagner, 
cruelly  ruptured  by  her  desertion  of  him  with  their. two 
children,  her  divorce  and  subsequent  marriage  with  his  for- 
mer friend — is  too  well  known  to  require  more  than  mention. 
Von  Biilow  was  not  a  creative  musician;  he  was  par 
excellence  the   reproductive,  the  interpretative  artist;  his 
type  the  objective,  not  the  subjective  like  that  of  his  great 
•S303id  Xpnis  o^  Xj^ss3D3u  s;  i;  saaaid 
XBTd  01  ?Bm  puB  '.oumd  am  Xpms  oqM  asoqj  jo  uitb  aqj 
SI  s3D3Td  SuiX^ld  ;^qi  pu^  ;3u!V  lu^^oduii  9qi  si  oumd 
am  SuiX^ld  i^qi  ^aSioj  i.uop  puy    -auip  jo  ao^ds  aiqissod 
;s9iaoqs  9q}  ui  itdnd  l^q?  }0  ;no  Disnm  isoui  aqi  ;33  urn 
uoiqM  puB  lidnd  aq;  o;  pa^dijpB  ^saq  si  qoiqM  auo  aq;  si  ;i 
l^m  poqiaui'ino  mou^  01  iubm  oqM  3Soqi  ip;  pu^  'SuiqD^a? 
10  aaii^ui  aqi  ui  'uaqj  'aaw^ui  X^aS  ^\m  ^  ^sn  sn  ^aq 
•ui^S^  ouBid  V  93S  01  a9A9u  9a;s9p  iB9a3  v  qim  puB  oisnui 
jo'  s^api  IF  P  P'OA^P  M^mosqB  poqos  i^q?  uioij  s9uiod 
iidnd  9qi  U9i  JO  ^no  s9Sbd  9uiu  ui  ;nq  id^DipuBq  9qi  jo 
ajids  ui  isiu^.d  B  9q  o,  jpsm.q  psAOid  puB  ui9isXs  9^^  o; 
aou9dns  U9SU  s^q  oqM  ^no  p9uam  si  Ijdnd  v  ^m^  ^  u; 
9DUO     -soiSSadaB  pu^  s91BDS  Xap  m9J  v  mq  Suiq^ou  X^id 
,o;  Xiqiq^  9qi  qitM  puB  'SuiX^ld  jo  "(i^  aqi  p  93p91MOU^ 
9a3B9iu  V   Xiuo   qiiAv  suopnipsui   qans  uioij  Xbmb  9Uiod 
siidnd  — 'S9SBD  11^  IsouqB  ui  9uibs  ^^^  si  qins9i  9q;  puy 

-XiiBpads  V  gpBui  sbm  oisnra 

'piDUMS9IU19pi^3B  pUI.  SlOOqPS  jO  sSol^jBD  FJ9A9S  JO  ^Snjgd 

-    1  I    Ml  I  uTrr*rT*i — -fflff"*^***"'     f"  »    1  ■  .i       ■>»  ., 


-raoo  qijM 
SI  Xjnp  s,J! 
JO  Xbm  }9S 
•siidnd  J9q: 

}U9J9JJip   ■B 

l^q;  Xpms 
sd'BqJ9(j 
noX  jBq;  s^ 

'moh  ■•J^l 
— 'sauq  }u; 
io  a9HBcas 
^■Bq}  XiBM  ; 


the  concerts,  of  his  second  tour  this 
eably  wanting;  his  clear  and  logical 
awerful  single  finger  tone,  which  in 
of  the  finale  of  the  Moonlight  Sonata 
rumpet,  hardly  maile  amends  for  the 
t  fine,  careless  rapture." 
th  neither  praise  nor  blame  when  he 
Singers,  in  general,  did  not  appeal 
ed  them  vain  and  commonly  wanting 
)f  Madame  Sembrich  he  made  an 
ed  her  art  in  the  highest  terms.  His 
^ell  known;  it  led  him  to  remark  in  his 
ting  manner  that  "  a  tenor  is  not  a  man, 
\  youth  was  once  ill-advised  enough 

to  him  by  saying  he  was  a  tenor,  but 
[used  on  receiving  the  kindly  rejoinder, 
;  worry  you!" 

of  his  frankness  is  the  letter  he  wrote 
Drmer  director  of  the  Peabody  Institute 
recommended  to  him  the  music  of  a 
I  whom   he   was  interested.     This  is 

he  wrote  it  in  his  own  Teutonized 

g^,  I  am  sorry  to  say  —  but  my  wretched, 
5  will  not  be  unknown  to  you — that  I 
is  'compositions,'  and  that  I  feel  much 
ated  for  being  able  to  take  the  least 
,  preposterous  mock  music.  I  don't 
be  gifted  —  that  you  most  know  better 


B  u;  paX-Bid  st  aoaid  sqi  ?Bifj  aas  o? 
L  -sasBjqd  puB  suna  mvxiso  3uiAv\d 
[Avop  uiiq  an  ;ouuBD  noX  ajojaaaqx 
XtTB  JO  jBqi  uioij  SuuaSug  jo  raajsXs 
iBq  lipvi  aq  sdBqaaj  asn  p|noM  noX 
1  aoj  3uu33ug  atuBS  aqi  asn  ^ouubd  aq 
[  Xpms  isnui  noA  isanoX  o;  XjddB 
I  poq^ara  aniBS  aq^  XiddB  noX  ubd  'uaqi 
3uoi  SI  sinoX  anqM  '^loiq?  puB  pBoaq 
)IB  paui'joj  aq  Xbui  1}  'sinoX  OBqi  jaSaBj 

puBq  s;h  uiH  ^°i  '^o"*  ^^  °P  '"'* 
;ratq  Xq  ;q3nBj  aq  isnra  ijdnd  qoBS 
1  JO  iJB  aq;  JO  uopBpunoj  aqi  aiB  ^o^^^ 
aapun  lou  op  poBpoq^ani  Xq  XBjd  Xaqi 
aAau  Xaqi  'SuiuJBai  aJB  Xaqi  poqiaui  b 
«  aqi  japua  Suiqonai  aqi  qJOsqB  Xaqi 
.oq  uaB9I  Xaq,  'saidpu.id  aq?  qiosqB 
Idouud  qoBOl  Xaqi  'poqiaui  B  qDBaj  JOU 
j^  jsipo  aqi  qiiAV  am^  ^V  sj  'I 
■■fc-jfqM  saost?3J  aqi  pjoj  aq  uaqj  puB 


Elektra.  His  little  known  Burleska  for  piano  and  orchestra 
von  Bulow  detested;  he  called  it  "hateful  music." 

He  met  Paderewski  in  Berlin  where  he  directed  the 
orchestra  during  the  pianist's  performance  of  his  owi. 
concerto.  He  praised  his  playing  and  describes  him  as 
"an  agreeable  man  of  culture  with  a  great  red-haired  and 
natural  wig,  which  frames  well  his  distinguished  features." 
He  dined  with  von  Biilow  and  his  wife,  who  were  much 
concerned  because  their  guest  ate  so  little  and  asked  him 
to  tell  them  what  he  liked  so  that  they  might  the  better 
prepare  for  him  the  next  time.  Paderewski  said,  "In  the 
matter  of  food,  I  like — guests!"  whereupon  von  Biilow 
called  him  a  cannibal. 

On  his  second  visit  to  this  country  he  found  much  to 
which  he  took  exception.  In  one  of  his  letters  from 
New  York  he  wrote  that  he  "would  be  in  paradise  if  it 
were  not  for  the  forwardness,  rudeness,  Philistinism,  and 
heaviness  of  the  people."  Still,  such  comments  were  no 
doubt  largely  prompted  by  ill  health,  for  at  other  times 
the  tone  of  his  letters  was  very  different;  for  example,  a 
few  days  later  we  find  a  very  different  tale:  "Fine  weather, 
public,  press,  piano,  and  no  Philistine." 

As  a  conductor  Theodore  Thomas  did  not  please  him; 
he  called  him  a  "glue-boiler"  —  that  is,  dull,  heavy,  prosaic. 
Of  the  Boston  Symphony  Orchestra  he  says:  "The  orchestra 
is  magnificent,  and  Gericke  understands  his  business  to 
the  fortissimo  degree,  much  better  than  the  so-called 
Wagnerian  conductors."  His  breadth  of  sympathy  is 
shown  by  the  delight  with  which  he  heard  a  performance 
of  Offenbach's  Grande  Duchesse,  in  which  Lillian  Russell 
played  the  title-r61e:  "I  was  not  ripe  for  this  earlier,  nc 
more  than  for  Mozart.  That  heavenly  woman  whose 
name  is  Lillian  Russell  comes  next  to  Agnes  Sorma  [a 
highly  popular  German  soubrette]."  ■ 

He  never  hesitated  to  take  his  audiences  into  his  con- 
ice;  his  boa  mots  and  impromptu  speeches  kept  them 

•sanjnvpnra  jo  jno  suBpisnra  puB  sSo.wXjiod  jo  in 
sjsiuBid  a^iBra  \\\ia.  iBq?  qspaj  jo  ;jos  auios  si  poqjaui  b  \b\\ 
pBOjqB  Bapi  UB  aq  oj  sraaas  aaaqj,  -sjidnd  puB  s^uaJB^ 
Xq  pauopuaui  jsjg  aaaM  i;  ssaiun  poqiaui  jo  :5iniqi  JaAa 
pjnoM  uiaqi  jo  isoui  jBqi  aJB  saouBqo  aqj  inq  'poq4aui  b  v 
aAaqaq  uiaq;  jo  amos  sdBqaaj  -jaqio  jo  poqiara  auios  j 
squaaaqpB  aq  oi  sjaqoBaj  joj  XjBssaoau  smaas  ji  spoqiai 
jnoqB  uoissaadxu;  SuqiBAaad  aqj  jo  aouanbasuoo  uj 
•iqSnBi  aq  oi  aABq  pjnoAv  iBqj  'UBUiBuiq3  auios  Xq  poipai 
B  SBM  aaaqj  ji  XiqBqojj  -poqjaui  ziqSiais  atp  ^o  poqiai 
jaiinmqDiajL  aqj  si  ii  sdBqaad  iQ  ^poqjaui  uosbj^  aqi 
SI  JO  ipoqiaui  X^jzpaqDsaq  aqj  ji  sj  -iqSnB}  si  aq  poqiai 
IBq.w  inq  'XBjd  oj  Moq  iqSnBi  si  ijdnd  aqi  lou  jo  jaqjaq; 
JO  uopsanb  b  jou  st  jj  -uoiiBJaptsuoD  snouas  jsora  at 
aq  O}  smaas  poqiam  jo  jan^tn  aqj  suosjad  amos  HXi^V 

XaiAWH   HOXVH   >1VOSO   AS 

^ 


It  so  happened  that  two  ladies  were 
making  their  way  to  their  seats  at  the 
very  moment  Von  Billow  finished  his 
introduction  of  the  first  movement  of 
Beethoven's  "Sonata  Pathetique."  This 
so  irritated  him  that  he  purposely  com- 
menced the  allegro  at  such  an  absurdly 
slow  pace  as  to  make  the  quavers  in 
the  bass  correspond  exactly  to  the  time 
of  the  ladies'  footsteps.  As  may  be 
imagined,  they  felt  on  thorns  and  hur- 
ried on  as  fast  as  they  could,  while 
Von  Billow  accelerated  his  tempo  in 
sympathy  with  their  increasing  pace. — 
Bartictt's  Musical  Reminiscences. 


Jfd9 


Von  Billow  was  indignant  with  pupils 
who  neglected  their  lessons  upon  slight 
excuses.  One  day  licfore  Ascen.sion  he 
feared  that  many  pupils  might  take  ad- 
vantage of  the  holidays.  Accordingly  he 
made  the  announcement :  "To-morrow 
we  shall  hold  religious  services  here.  I 
sl'.all  play  friiin  Bach  and  from  Beethoven. 
The  first  is  the  Old  Testament,  the  latter 
is  the  New  Testament." 


//// 


A  considerable  portion  of  the  library  of  the  late  Hans.^^ 
von  Billow  has  been  presented  to  the  Berlin  Municipal  j;^ 
Library  by  his  widow. 

The  German  Bach  Society  will  restore,  as  far  as  possible,^ 
all  the  old  organs  and  clavier  instruments  preserved  at  the  ^ 
Bach  Museum  at  Eisenach.  ^ 

The  famous  Bach  Choir  of  Bethlehem,  Pa.,  is  to  be  re- 
vived next  spring.  The  former  director,  Dr.  J.  Fred  Wolle, 
has  returned  and  has  resumed  rehearsal. 


X  SOUTHEBN  aE3'0NAL  HBPAP''  f*"'. 

nil    


nllllllilJilJIln 

A     000  634  274     5 


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UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA 

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STAMPED  BELOW. 


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